In a message aimed at the Arab world, President George W. Bush vowed today to stand by Iraq until democracy flourishes and said the US-led occupation already had improved the lives of average citizens.
Speaking to several hundred boisterous supporters in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, home to a major concentration of Arab immigrants to America, Mr Bush declared: "Day by day, hour by hour life in Iraq is getting better."
Mr Bush courted Michigan's Arab community with an eye to his re-election next year. His administration has had a difficult time convincing Arabs worldwide that it is not anti-Muslim after its roundup of Arab men following the September 11th, 2001 attacks and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Asked if Mr Bush's visit was aimed at mending fences, White House spokesman Mr Ari Fleischer replied: "Heavens no. I think everyone here is going to be very appreciative of the fact that thanks to this president Iraq is now free."
To other countries in the region who have criticized the US military action in Iraq and who have expressed fears that they could be next, Mr Bush said: "Iraq can be an example of peace and prosperity and freedom to the entire Middle East."
"It will be a hard journey but at every step of the way, Iraq will have a steady friend in the American people." Mr Bush drew a standing ovation when he said it UN sanctions on Iraq were pointless and it was time for them to be lifted.
The audience also rose to its feet when he vowed to find "the hoodlums who ravished the National Museum of Antiquities in Baghdad," when he declared Saddam Hussein "gone" and when he called for a unified Iraq.