SOROS: U.S. LEARNS LESSON IN UNITY

HONG KONG (AP) -- The terror attacks on Americans were a tragic lesson for
U.S. leaders on the need to seek cooperation and avoid "high-handed" moves
against other nations, billionaire financier George Soros said Thursday.

The U.S. effort to draw together an international coalition to fight
terrorism in the wake of last week's assaults was an abrupt switch from
President Bush's initial foreign policy bent of going it alone, Soros told
reporters and executives at a gathering in Hong Kong.

"I think the Bush administration is now realizing that they do need to
build alliances, and they have to be sensitive to the concerns of others.
They can't just move high-handedly and unilaterally," Soros said. "Nobody
has that kind of power."

"I think this tragedy has brought this home to America," he said.

Soros, 71, urged a cautious and patient response to the attacks, noting
that public reaction could tip the balance in some countries, such as
Pakistan and Egypt, in favor of antagonistic Islamic fundamentalist movements.

"We have suffered a big blow, and it's hard to take it without the instinct
of hitting back, but I think we really have to restrain ourselves because
the dangers are enormous," said Soros, who was born in Hungary but moved to
the United States in 1956.

"If there is a positive fallout from this horrific event, it is that the
Bush administration must realize we have to be concerned about the
reactions of others," he said.

Soros, who made his fortune managing hedge funds, says the world should
combat terrorism by revamping global financial institutions and providing
more money for aid and development assistance.

He presented a report this week proposing that international institutions
such as the World Trade Organization and the World Bank be revamped to help
protect the interests of the world's poorest countries.