United States:President George Bush and vice-president Dick Cheney have said that neither the Democratic-controlled Congress nor a hostile American public could stop the president sending more troops to Iraq.
"I fully understand they could try to stop me from doing it. But I've made my decision. And we're going forward," Mr Bush said in an interview to be broadcast on CBS's 60 Minuteslast night.
Mr Cheney said that if the president heeded opinion polls - which show two out of three Americans opposed to the troop surge - he would play into the hands of America's enemies.
"You cannot simply stick your finger into the wind and say, gee, public opinion is against, we better quit. That is part and parcel of the underlying fundamental strategy that our adversaries believe afflicts the United States. They are convinced that the current debate in the Congress, that the election campaign last fall, all of that is evidence that they're right when they say the United States doesn't have the stomach for the fight in this long war against terror," he said.
Mr Bush's new strategy for Iraq has drawn harsh criticism from both Democrats and Republicans in Congress and a congressional resolution condemning it is likely to win a comfortable majority. Democrats are divided over whether to refuse to fund the troop increase, a move some fear could be interpreted as a betrayal of service personnel now stationed in Iraq.
Mr Cheney said that nothing Congress does is likely to influence how the president conducts the military campaign in Iraq.
"He's the guy who's got to decide how to use the force and where to deploy the force. Congress, obviously, has to support the effort through the power of the purse, so they have got a role to play and we certainly recognise that. But also, you cannot run a war by committee," he said.
The president's new strategy is designed to improve security in Baghdad and boost public confidence in the government of Nouri al-Maliki. During a weekend visit to Baghdad, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton said she was doubtful that Mr Maliki's government would fulfil its commitment to send troops to Baghdad and introduce political reforms aimed at reassuring the minority Sunni population.
"I don't know that the American people or the Congress at this point believe this mission can work. And in the absence of a commitment that is backed up by actions from the Iraqi government, why should we believe it?" she told ABC News.
Mrs Clinton, whose 2002 vote to authorise the use of force in Iraq has alienated many Democratic activists, said it was now time to start withdrawing US troops.
"That would really demonstrate to the Iraqis that we don't have an open-ended commitment. We are not going to be here providing protection for their leaders, which we do. We are not going to be here standing by and trying to be called in from time to time as they see fit. That is not on the cards," she said.
Part of the president's new strategy is to isolate Iran and Syria and to pursue Iranians alleged to be aiding the insurgency within Iraq. Senior Democrats are considering legislation that would require the president to seek congressional sanction for military action against Iran.
"You will see a resolution saying they can't go into Iran without congressional authorisation," said Pennsylvania congressman John Murtha, chairman of the House appropriations defence subcommittee and an outspoken critic of the Iraq war.
Administration officials yesterday sidestepped questions about the possibility of a US attack inside Iran but Mr Cheney said that Iran was a cause for great concern in the region.