The United States did not "rush" the invasion of Iraq, President George W. Bush claimed as he marked the 60th anniversary of the Allied landing in Nazi-occupied France during World War Two.
"There was a great military victory going into Baghdad. ... It was well planned and well thought out," Bush said in an NBC News interview on Sunday responding to a question about planning for D-Day and a perception by some that the United States did not plan as carefully before going into Baghdad.
Bush conceded it was fair to say that "the enemy didn't lay down its arms like we had hoped," but he took issue with suggestions that the US-led coalition in Iraq had rushed pre- and post-war planning.
"If you're looking for parallels in World War Two, it took about four years to get an active reconstruction effort going" in the aftermath of the war, Bush said. He noted that the United States has been in Iraq just over a year.
"These are difficult assignments," Bush said. "It was a difficult assignment then. It's a difficult assignment now."
Asked if he expected that there would be fewer US troops in Iraq in six months or more, Bush said he was not going to "pick a timetable" for the crucial mission of training a capable Iraqi military force as quickly as possible.
Asked whether, in order to fulfil its Iraq mission, the United States would need to reinstate the military draft which was in effect during World War Two, Bush said: "No." Bush said the volunteer service was necessary and a model of efficiency.
In a sign of increasing stress on the Army as the Pentagon strives to maintain adequate troop levels in Iraq and Afghanistan, the military last week barred tens of thousands of US soldiers from leaving the military when their volunteer service commitment ends.
There are some 138,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and Bush has said their presence is vital for security until Iraq can cope on its own.
Several recent polls show Bush's approval ratings slipping amid growing doubts among voters about his handling of Iraq. Bush said if he did not see "a positive end," he might share the feelings of Americans who are questioning his Iraq policies.
"The end is a free Iraq," Bush said. "And the American people have got to understand that part of winning the war on terror is to encourage the habits of liberty in parts of the world that need the habits of liberty."
Interviewed in Normandy, Bush appeared to shrug off some anti-American sentiment throughout Europe that swelled over his decision to go to war in Iraq.
"I'm not trying to be popular. What I'm trying to do is what I think is right," Bush said. "And what is right is to fight terror."