Bush - Saddam ouster a plus for Mideast

WASHINGTON -- President Bush, offering new justification for war in Iraq, said Wednesday that "ending this direct and growing threat" from Saddam Hussein would pave way for peace in the Middle East and inspire democracy throughout the Arab world.

While saying the Iraqi regime still has time to avoid war, Bush told conservative backers that U.S. troops are ready for battle and spoke at some length about his plans for Iraq once Saddam is gone.

"The United States has no intention of determining the precise form of Iraq's new government. That choice belongs to the Iraqi people," Bush told the American Enterprise Institute. "Yet we will ensure that one brutal dictator is not replaced by another."

The address came at the end of a day marked by intense diplomatic activity, as Bush struggled to find votes in favor of a war-making resolution at the United Nations Security Council. The United States, Britain and Spain need nine votes and no vetoes to pass the measure.

Answering critics who say war would destabilize the region, Bush predicted there would be a "new stage for Middle East peace" once Saddam loses power.

Iraq would no longer threaten to dominate the region with weapons of mass destruction, Bush said, and he accused Saddam of financing suicide bombers, a charge Iraq has denied.

"A liberated Iraq can show the power of freedom to transform that vital region, by bringing hope and progress to the lives of millions," Bush said.

Gaining at U.N.

There was some evidence that Bush was gaining ground at the United Nations, including signals that Mexico would back the resolution. But new obstacles emerged, including a plan by Canada to reconcile bitter differences between Bush's position and a French-Russian-German proposal to continue weapons inspections until at least July.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters in Moscow, "We are not ready to fight, and we think that is a bad solution."

Even so, U.S. officials said intense negotiations to stave off a veto from Russia yielded some results.

Saddam is trying to convince U.N. nations that he is complying with their anti-arms resolutions, despite what the United States says is ample evidence that he is not. In a rare interview with an American journalist, Saddam dismissed U.S. efforts to encourage his exile.

"We will die here," Saddam told CBS' Dan Rather.

Bush sought to prepare the nation for the costs of conflict -- both financially and in soldiers' lives, calling for a "sustained commitment from many nations, including our own."

A senior Defense Department official said it will cost $60 billion to $85 billion for military operations in Iraq and elsewhere.

"We will remain in Iraq as long as necessary, and not a day more," Bush told the American Enterprise Institute think tank, where Vice President Dick Cheney's wife, Lynne, has been a senior fellow.

Plans after Saddam

A senior administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. military will control Iraq in the short-term after Saddam's removal. Troops will maintain security, protect Iraq's oil fields, ensure that other nations respect Iraq's existing borders and find and destroy weapons of mass destruction.

A civilian administrator will eventually take over the work of engaging Iraqis in the formation of a democratic government. The transition would last months, not weeks, the official said, adding that a more precise estimate won't be possible until it is clear how Iraq weathered an attack.

The official said the administrator would not necessarily be an American.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Lieberman said appointing an American to oversee Iraq after Saddam is removed would put the United States "in the position of an occupying power, not a liberator."

Bush said Arab nations will be inspired by democratic reform in Iraq. "A new regime in Iraq would serve as a dramatic and inspiring example of freedom to other nations of the region," he said.

Neither he nor his advisers explained why the Middle East peace process made no major advances while Saddam was contained in the 1990s. He did not mention other nations tied to unrest in the Middle East, such as Iran, but said removing Saddam would "be given clear warning that support for terror will not be tolerated."

Bush called on the new government to end construction of settlements and reiterated his demand that Palestinians curb terrorism. He said Saddam's removal will give both sides a chance to bury their differences in a more stable environment.