(I aplogize if it has been diaried elsewhere, I will delete it.)
Staff and agencies
Thursday September 22, 2005
President George Bush today insisted American forces would not withdraw from Iraq "on my watch" and give terrorists the chance "to claim an historic victory over the United States".http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1576040,00.html
Anyone see divergence of views between the Congressional Republicans and Mr. Bush in the near future?
President George Bush today insisted American forces would not withdraw from Iraq "on my watch" and give terrorists the chance "to claim an historic victory over the United States".
Mr Bush said the resolve of terrorists had been strengthened by the hesitant US response to the hostage crisis with Iran in 1979, the bombing of US marines barracks in Lebanon four years later, and the 1993 terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre.
"The terrorists concluded we lacked the courage and character to defend ourselves," Mr Bush said. "The only way the terrorists can win is if we lose our nerve and abandon the mission. For the safety and security of the American people, that's not going to happen on my watch."
"I recognise their good intentions but their position is wrong," the president said. "Withdrawing our troops would make the world more dangerous."
He said a pullout would embolden US adversaries and allow Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden "to dominate the Middle East and launch more attacks on America and other free nations".
Mr Bush acknowledged the deaths of more than 1,900 Americans in Iraq and said "we'll honour their sacrifice by completing the mission and winning the war on terrorism".
"The battle lines are drawn and there is no middle ground," he said. "If we fail that test, the consequences for the safety and security of the American people would be enormous. Our withdrawal from Iraq would allow the terrorists to claim an historic victory over the United States."
The Iraqi national security adviser, Mowaffak al-Rubaie, called the attack by British forces "a flagrant violation of Iraqi sovereignty".
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