Attacking Barack Obama on the national security issue, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Thursday said the Democratic presidential candidate would be incapable of meeting US national security challenges.

Palin, speaking at a roundtable meeting a group of retired military commanders and the former leaders of the CIA and the Homeland Security Department, said though the 47-year-old Obama, a first-term Illinois senator, is “admirable in many ways”, but he was not yet ready for the most important job in the world.

Palin said: “Rousing speeches can fill a stadium, but they cannot keep this country safe.”

After the meeting, Palin went on to address a packed rally in Erie, where she told the crowd that though economic issues may be the prime concern in the minds of the voters, the country risks ignoring national security challenges at its own peril. She drew cheers from the crowd when she said former Vietnam War prisoner and Navy pilot McCain understood the costs of war after commanding more than just a “scripted political campaign.”

The Alaska Governor also blasted the Obama campaign for airing the half-hour ad on national television on Wednesday night, saying that it did not concentrate more on foreign policy and domestic security.

Palin said: “Gone are the days when we had placed domestic and foreign concerns in two distinct categories and just choose a president according to the priorities of the moment. On November 4th, we need to elect a president who can handle the difficulties in the economy and the dangers of the world all at the same time.”