WASHINGTON, March 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W. Bush flatly denied on Tuesday a civil war has broken out in Iraq, reaffirming his confidence of a ultimate U.S. victory in Iraq.

    

U.S. President George W. Bush speaks at a White House news conference. He flatly denied on Tuesday a civil war has broken out in Iraq, reaffirming his confidence of a ultimate U.S. victory in Iraq. (Photo: Xinhua/Reuters)

Speaking at a White House news conference aimed to confront doubts about his strategy in Iraq, Bush said, "we all recognized that there is violence, that there is sectarian violence. But the way I look at the situation is, the Iraqis looked and decided not to go into civil war."

    He said he did not agree with former interim Iraqi prime minister Ayad Allawi, who told the British Broadcasting Corporation on Sunday that "if this is not civil war, then God knows what civil war is."

    Bush claimed that "others inside and outside Iraq think the nation has stopped short of civil war."

    The president also spared no time to reiterate that he is confident of the victory in Iraq.

    "I'm optimistic we'll succeed. If not, I'd pull our troops out," he said.

    Bush scoffed at a question suggesting he should reshuffle his White House staff to help raise his sagging poll standings.

    In particular, he stressed that he did not think that Secretaryof Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld should resign.

    Asked about former supporters who now oppose him and the war, Bush said he is trying to win them over by "talking realistically to people" about the war and its importance to the nation.

    "I can understand how Americans are worried about whether or not we can win," Bush said, adding that most Americans want victory "but they're concerned about whether or not we can win."

    More than 2,300 U.S. soldiers have died in three years of war in Iraq and the Mideast country is still trapped in persistent violence and chaos.

    Recent opinion polls all show the American public's support of the war and Bush himself have dramatically declined. Enditem