U.S. President George W. Bush (L) shakes
hands with Director of the Islamic Center of Washington DC Abdullah Khouj
while attending the rededication ceremony of The Islamic Center in
Washington June 27, 2007. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
WASHINGTON, June 28 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George
W. Bush said on Thursday that his plan of sending more troops to Iraq to help
quell sectarian violence in the country has shown "good results," particularly
in the western Anbar province.
In a speech at the U.S. Naval War College, in
Newport, Rhode Island, Bush said he laid out a new strategy for Iraq early this
year, to "help the Iraqis make progress toward reconciliation."
"These operations are showing good results. Our
forces are going into parts of Anbar where they couldn't operate before," he
said.
Since the military buildup, recruiting of Iraqi
police forces drew thousands of candidates, compared to a few hundred just a few
months ago, he said.
In Anbar province, its first police academy was
opened this month, and overall attacks there were "sharply down" from this time
last year, said the president.
Bush, however, acknowledged that Anbar province
"remains a dangerous place," because "al Qaeda wants their base of operations
back and it is working to assassinate sheiks and intimidate the local
population."
Bush said the United States hoped to replicate the
success in Anbar in other parts of Iraq -- especially in areas in and around
Baghdad, but he also cautioned the U.S. military to "prepare ourselves for more
violence and more setbacks."
With all additional troops now in place, Bush said,
the military was at the beginning stage of the offensive.
One of major challenges was the "influx of foreign
fighters and foreign support," according to the president.
"We can expect more casualties as our forces enter
enemy strongholds and push back against foreign interference," he warned.
Currently there are over 150,000 U.S. troops in Iraq,
and more than 3,500 American soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqis have been
killed in the country since the U.S. invasion in March 2003.
SOFIA, June 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W. Bush
has refused to admit any mistakes in Iraq, but said the cause was "necessary and
noble for peace," according to Bulgarian National Television on Monday. Full story
WASHINGTON, May 25 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W.
Bush on Friday signed a war-funding bill that erased a timetable to withdraw
troops from Iraq from its previous version. Full story
SOFIA, June 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W. Bush
has refused to admit any mistakes in Iraq, but said the cause was "necessary and
noble for peace," according to Bulgarian National Television on Monday. Full story
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