US President George Bush has told the American people he will not be deflected from his goal of establishing a democratic government in Iraq as part of his drive for stability in the Middle East.

In a televised address to the nation today, Mr Bush declared that US troops would stay on Iraqi soil as long as was necessary, and he would increase forces in the country if needed.

He also moved to reassure the Iraqis and the rest of the world that the schedule for transfer of power back to a national government would take place on June 30.

"If additional forces are needed, I will send them. If additional resources are needed, we will provide them," the president said, after paying tribute to the servicemen and women who had given their lives in the campaign to bring down former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

Mr Bush referred to his "historic mission" to bring democracy to Iraq, but in what could be seen as an attempt to reassure the powers of the Middle East and Iraqis opposed to the US presence in the country, he declared: "We are not an imperial power, we are a liberating power."

Mr Bush also outlined the schedule for national elections in the country by next January, and a national referendum in October next year to complete the transfer of power and establish a nationally elected and supported government for the country by December.

Mr Bush also hinted at a possible role for Nato as a peace-keeping influence in the Middle East after the normalisation of diplomatic relations with Iraq, but he affirmed that US personnel would continue to maintain a presence in the country after June 30 to assist in the rebuilding of the country.

Mr Bush said the US was demanding the arrest or capture of Muqtada al-Sadr, a radical Shi'ite cleric whose illegal militias are blamed for the mutilation of four people, believed to be Americans.

It was the president's first prime-time news conference since March 6, last year, days before the opening of the war to depose Saddam.

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