IRAQ: President Bush has defended his decision to invade Iraq but acknowledged that about 30,000 Iraqis have been killed since the invasion.
Mr Bush told the World Affairs Council in Philadelphia that there would be more setbacks on Iraq's political path, which he compared to the early struggles of the United States.
"No nation in history has made the transition to a free society without facing challenges, setbacks, and false starts . . . There's still a lot of difficult work to be done in Iraq. But thanks to the courage of the Iraqi people, the year 2005 will be recorded as a turning point in the history of Iraq, the history of the Middle East and the history of freedom," he said.
In a surprise move, the president answered questions from the audience, one of whom asked how many Iraqi citizens had been killed since the war began.
"I would say 30,000, more or less, have died as a result of the initial incursion and the ongoing violence against Iraqis. We've lost about 2,140 of our own troops in Iraq," Mr Bush said.
The White House said later that the figure of 30,000 was an estimate based on media reports rather than an official body count. It is consistent with an estimate by Iraq Body Count, a group that monitors media reports of Iraqi deaths.
Other estimates are much higher and a study in the medical journal, The Lancet, suggested that as many as 100,000 Iraqis could have died in the conflict.
Another questioner asked why the administration linked the invasion of Iraq to the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001 when there was no evidence of ties between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda. Mr Bush said the terrorist attacks changed his approach to foreign policy and convinced him that Saddam Hussein represented a threat.
"I made a tough decision. And knowing what I know today, I'd make the decision again. Removing Saddam Hussein makes this world a better place and America a safer country," he said. Declaring that America could only lose in Iraq "if we lose our nerve", the president promised continued US support as Iraq builds up its democratic institutions.
Mr Bush's endorsement of nation-building reflects a major change from his policy when he took office in 2001 and Condoleezza Rice declared that "we don't need to have the 82nd airborne escorting kids to kindergarten".
A new Pentagon directive underscores the change, calling for the US armed forces to be equally adept at fighting wars and making peace.
"Stability operations are a core US military mission that the Department of Defense shall be prepared to conduct and support. They shall be given priority comparable to combat operations and be explicitly addressed and integrated across all DoD activities," the directive says.
Mr Bush said said it was unacceptable conduct to beat and torture prisoners "and those who committed these crimes will be held to account".
He said during the regime of Saddam Hussein, Shia, Kurds and other groups were brutally oppressed, and for some there is now a temptation to take justice into their own hands.
He said the US will continue helping Iraqis build an impartial system of justice.