Bush: Iraq war will require more sacrifice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President George W. Bush, bracing
for the fallout when the U.S. death toll in Iraq reaches 2,000,
said on Tuesday the Iraq war will require more sacrifice and
rejected critics calling for a U.S. pullout.

Bush, facing waning support for the war, argued that Iraq
is making progress by approving a new constitution and that
Iraqi troops are increasingly playing a larger role in
defending against the insurgency.

“Each loss of life is heartbreaking, and the best way to
honor the sacrifice of our fallen troops is to complete the
mission and lay the foundation of peace by spreading freedom,”
Bush said, his voice breaking with emotion as he spoke to a
luncheon of military wives at Bolling Air Force Base in
Washington.

In a lengthy speech, Bush said those calling for a U.S.
withdrawal from Iraq were refuted by a simple question, whether
America and other nations would be more or less safe if Iraqi
insurgency leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and al Qaeda leader
Osama bin Laden were in control of Iraq.

Bush’s remarks were aimed at addressing criticism expected
when the U.S. death toll in Iraq reaches the 2,000 milestone.
It stood at 1,999 on Tuesday.

“This war will require more sacrifice, more time and more
resolve,” he said. “The terrorists are as brutal an enemy as we
have ever faced.”