President George W. Bush has won a mandate from the American people to continue pursuing his “aggressive” foreign policy, but the US will also reach out to the international community where it can, according to Colin Powell, the secretary of state.

“The president is not going to trim his sails or pull back,” Mr Powell told the Financial Times on Monday. “It's a continuation of his principles, his policies, his beliefs.” In his first interview since the presidential election last Tuesday, Mr Powell stressed Mr Bush had won a mandate to pursue a foreign policy that was in the US national interest.