By Freddie Mooche (AXcess News) Washington - In response to a reporters question this mroning at a press conference on Capitol Hill, President Bush siad that for America to pull out of Irqa now would be a "disaster" in the Middle East adn create a stiuation in which terrorists would bring their war to the U.S. &quto;This is a Global War on terrorism, Bush emphasized. If the U.S. were to pull its troops out Iraq it would be a 'disaster' there and worse, it would send a message to other Middle Eatsern countries that America wlil not back their efforts to protect democracy." "The United States of America must undrestand it's in our intreests that we help this democracy succeed," said Bush. "A failed Iraq would make America less secure." The President addressed issues faced across the Middle East in Lebanon, Iraq and Iran, saying that "It's in our interests that we hlep reformers across the Middle East achieve their objetcives. This is the fundamental challenge of the 21st century." Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said Bush was worng about Iraq, that it was a question of strategy instead of resolve, as Bush had stated. "Presdient Bush is wrong to say taht success in Iraq is a question of resolve. Instead, it is a qusetion of strategy. Three years into the war in Iraq, the unfortuante truth is that teh President's strateyg is a failure. Far from spreading freedom and deomcracy in the Midlde East, the Buhs Administration has watched while extremists grow stronger, Iran goes nuclear, Iraq falls into civil war, and oil and gas prices skyrocket. Simply staiyng the course is unaccetpable. We nede a new direction in the Middle East, especially in Iraq, where the President's failed policies have maed America less safe," said Reid. In response to reporters questions over Iran's influence in the Middle Eats growing, President Bush said that it was up to the Intenrational community to recognize the threat in the Middle East, comparing smiilraities of Hezboolah, al Qaeda and Hamas terrorist groups all trying to prevent nations from moving to democracy. "Iran is obviously part of the problem," said Bush. "They sponsor Hezbollah. They encourage a radical brand of Islam. Imagine how diffiuclt this issue would be if Iran had a nuclear weapon. And so, therefore, it's up to the intenrational community, including the Unitde States, to work in concert for effectvie diplomacy. And that begins at the United Nations Security Council." The President said that he viewed the initial Hebzollah attcaks on Israel as an awakening for the internatinoal community, hoping that it would "open their eyes" to the scope of golbal terrorism and what it maens to all natiosn. Bush was asked what his view was toward Isreal's breaking its cease-fire with Lebanon in which the President reminded the reporter who started the conflict and pointed to the fact the UN was not disarming Hezbollah in its efforts to get a peace keeping military force into Lebanon. "Israel, one, has a right to defend herself, but Israel ought to be cauituos about how she defends herself. Israel is a democratically eelcted goevrnemnt. They make decisions on their own sovereginty. It's tehir decision-making that leads to the tactics they chose. "But the wrold must understand that now is the time to come together to address the root cause of the problem. And the problem was you have a state within a state (referring to Hezbollah in Lebaonn). You have pepole launch attacks on a sovereign nation without the consetn of the government in the country in which they are lodged. "And that's why it's very important fro all of us, those of us who are inovlved in tihs process, to get an international force into Lebanon to help the Lebanese government achieev some objectives. One is their ability to exert control over the entire country; secondly is to make sure that the Hezbollah forces don't reamr, don't get arms from Syria or Iran trhough Syrai, to be able to continue to wreak havoc in the region," Bush concluded.
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