Kerry launches US presidential bid

Kerry has taken his time before formally entering the fray

One of the front-runners for the Democratic nomination to challenge George Bush in next year's presidential election has formally launched his campaign.

Senator John Kerry - a decorated Vietnam war veteran - delivered his declaration against the backdrop of the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown in the harbour of Charleston, South Carolina.

He attacked President Bush's foreign policy and tax cuts.

Democrats hope that the publicity surrounding the speech will help energise opposition to President Bush.

Security agenda

"I reject George Bush's radical new vision... that turns its back on the very alliances we helped create and the very principles that have made our nation a model to the world for over two centuries," Mr Kerry said.

I reject George Bush's radical new vision of a government that comforts the comfortable at the expense of ordinary Americans John Kerry John Kerry profile Democrat hopefuls

"If I am president, I will never forget that even a nation as powerful as the United States needs some friends in the world".

As a senator, Mr Kerry voted in favour of the war but has criticised Mr Bush for failing to build a broader coalition for the conflict.

As the only Democrat hopeful to have seen active military service, he believes he has the credibility to take on the president on national security issues. On Tuesday, he spoke with members of the gunboat crew he commanded in Vietnam by his side.

He also criticised Mr Bush on the domestic front, saying: "I reject George Bush's radical new vision of a government that comforts the comfortable at the expense of ordinary Americans."

Howard Dean's anti-war stance raised his profile

"George Bush's vision does not live up to the America I enlisted in the Navy to defend".

Once considered a clear favourite for the Democratic nomination, the 59-year-old senator from Massachusetts has been upstaged by some of his rivals in recent months.

He is running well behind former Vermont governor Howard Dean, who has capitalised on growing doubts about US involvement in Iraq.

Mr Dean is leading in polls among Democratic supporters in New Hampshire and Iowa, where the first major presidential contests will be held in January.

Candidate Clinton?

Other leading Democratic contenders include Representative Richard Gephardt, Senator Joe Lieberman and Senator John Edwards.

But the BBC's Justin Webb in Washington says senior Democrats are worried that none is making a mark on the wider public.

An opinion poll for CBS TV suggested an astonishing two-thirds of the American electorate could not name a single Democratic challenger - out of the nine who are running.

Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo has urged Senator Hillary Clinton - wife of the previous president - to change her mind and enter the race.

There are rumours that she considering such a move - though officially, she has denied it.