President Bush said today that the sectarian violence in Iraq is not civil war but is part of an al-Qaeda plot to goad Iraqi factions into repeatedly attacking each other.
US President George W Bush speaks at a news conference in Tallinn, Estonia. REUTERS/Jim Young
"No question it's tough, no question about it," Mr Bush said at a news conference this morning with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves in Tallinn.
"There's a lot of sectarian violence taking place, fomented in my opinion because of the attacks by al-Qaeda causing people to seek reprisal."
Mr Bush, who travels to Jordan later in the week for a summit with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, said the latest cycle of violence does not represent a new era in Iraq.
The country is suffering the deadliest week of sectarian fighting since the war began in March 2003.
"We've been in this phase for a while," Mr Bush said. This comment appeared at odds with the assessment of the president's national security adviser, who told reporters on the way to Estonia that Iraq is in a "new phase" that requires changes.
Reviews of how to alter the Iraq strategy are under way within the administration, and a bipartisan panel is working on recommendations it is expected to present to Mr Bush next month.
President Bush speaking about Iraq
As the US involvement in Iraq surpassed the length of America's participation in World War II, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned that Iraq is close to civil war and called for drastic action to halt the spiralling violence.
Asked if Iraq is in a civil war now, Mr Annan replied: "I think given the developments on the ground, unless something is done drastically and urgently to arrest the deteriorating situation, we could be there. In fact we are almost there."
Sectarian violence in Iraq is at its worst level in the roughly three-and-a-half years since the US-led coalition invaded the country and toppled Saddam Hussein.