US President George W. Bush says the United States is working on a new plan for hastening Iraqi self-government amid growing impatience among Iraqis over the US-led occupation.
He said the United States was in a "struggle" with increasingly active Iraqi resistance fighters for the support of ordinary Iraqis, and vowed to prevail.
The president and the White House declined, however, to confirm reports that after meetings this week with the US administrator of Iraq, Paul Bremer, Bush has abandoned his previous strategy of insisting on a new Iraqi constitution before handing over power to a temporary government.
"What I'm interested in doing is working with Ambassador Bremer and the governing council to work on a plan that will encourage the Iraqis to assume more responsibility," Bush told reporters in the Oval Office.
Bush was asked whether he wanted to set up an interim government before a constitution was written. The New York Times reported today the administration had decided to hold elections early next year and give power to an interim government before a new constitution is written.
That would be more in line with a transition plan that had been favoured by European countries including France, but rejected by the United States in favour of having the US-established Iraqi Governing Council write a constitution, then hold elections before power would be transferred.
