Colin Powell, the US secretary of state, on Tuesday expressed the hope that Muslim nations would see the best side of the US in its generous response to the victims of the Asian tsunami.

“What it does in the Muslim world, the rest of the world is [being] given an opportunity to see American generosity, American values in action,” Mr Powell said in Jakarta, capital of Indonesia, the most populous Muslim nation, where the death toll from the disaster could exceed 100,000.