President Bush's ultimatum to Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein Monday night marked the end of diplomacy, a political science professor and a Mercer County's congressman said.

The president's remarks were not surprising, said Dr. Keith Lepak, co-director of Peace and Conflict Studies at Youngstown State University.

"This ultimatum is a typical tactic used to identify the start of military action," said the political science professor. "It is the very least the president could do."

U.S. Rep. Phil English, Erie, R-3rd District, said Bush "exhausted all the opportunities available to him. At this point, he has no real diplomatic opportunities to turn to."

English acknowledged there were "misgivings" about ordering Saddam to leave his country or face a military attack but said Congress was largely behind any military action.

"I don't think anyone wanted it to come to this," English said. "This is a conflict we didn't seek, but we are obliged to resolve it."

In scoffing at President Bush's ultimatum, Saddam Hussein may be trying to make a statement of his defiance, Lepak said.

"He may want to go down in a blaze of glory," he said.

English said he believed the president was right in making sure people understand the United States is in conflict with the Iraqi dictator and military, not the Iraqi people.

"We do not want to hurt Iraqi civilians," he said. "That is an important policy to pursue."

Bush's declaration has been assailed by longtime U.S. allies, but Lepak said France and Germany are the exception, rather than the rule.

"What a lot of people don't realize is that many of the European countries support our policy toward Iraq," he said.

Lepak said the apparent lack of international enthusiasm for the U.S. position could be due to a growing distance between international leaders.

Current world leaders, he said, are from a new generation and no longer understand each other as well as they once did, and may not share the same opinions.

"We don't see the same old Cold War consensus anymore; there's no common enemy," he said.

Lepak said he didn't think the Iraq crisis would mean the end of the United Nations.

"I'm not worried about the relevance or collapse of institutions like the United Nations or NATO," Lepak said. "We may see a restructuring or reshaping of the goals of those reorganizations."