?Enemies of freedom are making a desperate stand there, and there they must be defeated. This will take time, and require sacrifice,? said Bush in a televised address. ?Yet we will do whatever is necessary, we will spend what is necessary, to achieve this essential victory in the war on terror, to promote freedom, and to make our own nation more secure.?

Bush said he had asked Congress for $87bn to fund the occupation and rebuilding of Iraq and similar efforts in Afghanistan ? a sum correspondents describe as huge, coming as it does amid growing public dissatisfaction at the US role in Iraq.

He also appealed for international help to resolve Iraq?s security problems, saying the United Nations had a ?responsibility? to take on an expanded role in the country.

The president has been facing a barrage of domestic criticism following the deaths of dozens of US soldiers in guerrilla-style attacks in the wake of the fall of Saddam Hussein. The speech was aimed at bolstering public opinion in America amid accusations that Bush has failed to devise or explain a workable post-war plan for Iraq.

But opposition Democrats have said the speech failed to set out a course that will steer Iraq towards stability. ?Let?s be clear ? a 15-minute speech does not make up for 15 months of misleading the American people on why we should go to war against Iraq or 15 weeks of mismanaging the reconstruction effort since we have been there,? presidential hopeful Howard Dean said.

UN involvement

The Bush administration has come under pressure from opposition politicians to enlist the international community to help shoulder the burden of policing Iraq.

Washington has now presented a draft resolution to the UN Security Council under which it hopes to secure a multinational force for Iraq and boost UN involvement in the country?s political future.

But the draft resolution has already been criticised by France, Germany and Russia ? countries which also opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq ? who complain it does not give the UN or the Iraqi people enough power.

Bush said that he recognised not all of America?s allies had supported the invasion, ?yet we cannot let past differences interfere with present duties?.

Referring to last month?s devastating bomb attack on the UN headquarters in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, Bush said: ?Terrorists in Iraq have attacked representatives of the civilised world and opposing them must be the cause of the civilised world. Members of the United Nations now have an opportunity, and the responsibility, to assume a broader role in assuring that Iraq becomes a free and democratic nation.?

However, Bush gave assurances that the Iraqi people would also play a central role: ?They must rise to the responsibilities of a free people, and secure the blessings of their own liberty.?

In the latest indication of the instability in Iraq, US forces in the central city of Najaf say Shia Muslim militias there must lay down their weapons or face being disarmed, by force if necessary.

The militias have seized control of the city in the wake of last month?s massive car bombing which killed leading Shia cleric Mohammed Baqer al-Hakim and more than 100 others.

Bush said the recent string of deadly bombings in Iraq and ongoing attacks against US troops were designed to intimidate.

?There is more at work in these attacks than blind rage. The terrorists have a strategic goal. They want us to leave Iraq before our work is done. They want to shake the will of the civilised world,? he said.

Bush?s three objectives in Iraq

Destroying the terrorists

Enlisting the support of other nations for a free Iraq

Helping Iraqis assume responsibility for their own defence and their own future

Factbox

Who will send troops to iraq ?

France

France is insisting on a central role for the UN which goes beyond the limited one offered in Security Council resolution 1483, under which the UN is subsidiary to the occupying powers. It is also arguing for a political approach. ?The only realistic option is to transfer authority and sovereignty to the Iraqis themselves. This must be done rapidly as part of a process which only the United Nations can render fully legitimate,? Roland Galharague of the French embassy in London told. ?For our country, whatever measures may ultimately be adopted cannot simply be an enlargement or adjustment of the present occupying forces.?

Germany

Germany, which has 10,000 troops committed in peacekeeping operations around the world, says it ?does not have the capacity? to contribute to a multinational force for Iraq. Germany intends to expand its peacekeeping operations in Afghanistan, where it already has 1,800 troops.

Russia

Russia ?does not rule out? sending peacekeepers to Iraq if an appropriate UN Security Council resolution is passed. Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov said that everything depended on how far the Security Council would be given a real opportunity to influence the development of the situation in the country.

Turkey

The US has approached Turkey to request troops. But while Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said his country may be prepared to contribute 10,000 troops to a UN-backed force in Iraq, the military has indicated a lower figure of 5,000. The issue of sending troops to Iraq is highly controversial in Turkey and any deployment would have to be approved by Parliament.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh has vast experience of peacekeeping and uses such missions to promote its image abroad. It is committing troops in Liberia and Ituri, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Authorities have not yet made a final decision but say a request by the UN for troops is likely to be met with a ?positive response?.

Pakistan

Pakistan is likely to contribute troops to the multinational force but needs a UN resolution in order to do so. The authorities have not yet made a final decision.

India

India refused to contribute troops to the US-led coalition force. It has said peacekeepers can only be sent following a stronger UN mandate. ?What Colin Powell has suggested does not constitute a blue-helmet force. We are waiting to see if what is suggested constitutes a specific UN mandate,? said an Indian official. India also wants: ? differentiation between the multinational force and occupying US-led coalition forces ? for the multinational force to be deployed after a request from the Iraqi people

Japan

The Japanese Parliament approved deployment of up to 1,000 personnel to help with reconstruction in Iraq, in what would be the largest deployment of Japanese troops overseas since the Second World War. However, their arrival may be postponed, following the recent bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad.

Thailand

Thailand too may postpone sending troops following the bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad.

Indonesia

The official position of Indonesia ? which vehemently opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq ? is that authorities are waiting for a UN request. Traditionally it contributes troops to UN missions charged with settling specific disputes, rather than enforcing peace.

Mexico

Mexico ? whose membership of the UN Security Council ends this December ? is unlikely to contribute troops.