"Then we must settle it like a man and a woman," the guard said meaningfully.Yesterday we went to Gobustan, an hour's drive from Baku, where, in 1939, Azeri archaeologists discovered 12,000-year-old petroglyths carved into boulders high above the Caspian Sea. Unesco has declared it a world heritage site which would mean something only if the UN body was prepared to talk the talk. If Gobustan were anywhere in England it would be surrounded by the usual tourist infrastructure – hamburger stalls, souvenir shops where you can buy T-shirts of 10,000-year-old petroglyths, key rings, tea cosies and biscuit tins. It is refreshing to stumble over prehistoric history in such a casual way, but then I'm not an archaeologist.Any more visitors and the place will soon be destroyed.

Compared to the cave in Lascaux where visitors have to wear masks to protect the carvings from their breath, the Gobustan petroglyths are pitifully neglected; our taxi, disgorging black fumes from its exhaust, parked right next to a boulder bearing a depiction of 10,000-year-old warriors brandishing spears. We took photographs of prancing horses and grazing bulls and men with huge calf muscles performing the food dance.Some of the carvings were easier to photograph because they were outlined in white, due presumably to calcification Wrong. In fact, other tourists had squeezed toothpaste into the carvings to make them show up better in photographs. I was once scolded by the guide in Anne Hathaway's cottage for running my fingers along the arm of an Elizabethan chair "It is 400 years old,'' she said I bet she'd soon sort out those toothpaste hooligans.. A vision for a new world order based upon co-operation and springing from today's interdependence of nations and peoples was the Prime Minister's call to arms at Labour's conference. A vision for a new world order based upon co-operation and springing from today's interdependence of nations and peoples was the Prime Minister's call to arms at Labour's conference. Yes, the international situation is dangerous and could become more so. But the reaction to the terrorist attacks on the US contains hope for the most fundamental re-alignment of global politics since the beginning of the Cold War.Shock and horror reverberated around the world as billions watched the guided-missile airliners smash through New York's twin towers on television.

It generated an immediate torrent of revulsion against the terrorists, and also deep sympathy for the American people.The unity of the world has been quite unprecedented: from Nato and the European Union to Russia and China. General Musharraf's brave decision to sign up Pakistan was particularly significant.Of course no one knows how fast that will hold as the coming military action unfolds The military task is difficult. But instead of being alone and beleaguered, the US has felt quite the opposite. Instead of the hawkish response many expected, it has been cool and careful, planning systematically for targeted and appropriate action. Domestic pressures within the US for lashing out have been muted.Those who claim London is merely coat-tailing Washington couldn't be more wrong. Because Tony Blair has been through the Kosovo war – with all its dangers and fraught uncertainties - and because he has been so steadfast in his support for President Bush, his influence is considerable. Theirs is a dual-carriageway partnership, not a one-way street.Speaking at the Labour Party conference, the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schr?, also underlined that backing from all of us in the European Union will be steadfast, not flaky as some had all too eagerly speculated.