A YEAR ago today, the unforgettable image that flashed around the world was of a statue of Saddam Hussein falling to the ground: a symbol of the allied "victory" in Iraq.

Today, the dominant image coming out of Iraq shows US marines praying over the body of another fallen comrade: a symbol of the continuing horror in the country they were sent to liberate.

A year on from Saddam's crashing fall from grace, the Americans insist that the situation in Iraq is not out of control.

But with each day bringing more death and destruction, that claim looks less and less convincing.

So far this week, the death toll comprises 459 Iraqis and 36 Americans. It does not have the look of control.

Robin Cook is right - the American forces have to stop behaving like warriors and act like peacekeepers, because enemies are not just being created within Iraq but across the world.

Next week, Tony Blair flies to Washington for crisis talks with George Bush and the importance of that meeting cannot be overestimated.

With their political futures bound together, Mr Blair has to make Mr Bush heed the message - which will no doubt be reinforced at his earlier meeting with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan - that now is not the time for strong-arm tactics.

The British Prime Minister has been a good friend to the American President, risking his own future by sending British troops into the war with Iraq.

But good friends also need to be strong enough to be brutally honest.

And the dangerous truth is that the gung-ho Bush administration is rapidly losing the confidence of the world.