President George W. Bush would like to see a lengthy US troop presence in Iraq like the one in South Korea to provide stability but not in a frontline combat role, the White House said today.
The comment came as Mr Bush, under pressure to steer the warring groups in Iraq toward a political reconciliation, held a secure video conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi and Shia Vice President Adel Abdul al-Mahdi.
Mr Bush encouraged them to make progress toward an oil revenue-sharing plan and political reforms.
"It's about the need to bring everybody together in Iraq," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the White House National Security Council.
The United States has had thousands of US troops in South Korea to guard against a North Korean invasion for 50 years. Democrats in control of the US Congress have been pressing Bush to agree to a timetable for pulling troops from Iraq, an idea firmly opposed by the president.
White House spokesman Tony Snow said Bush would like to see a US role in Iraq ultimately similar to that in South Korea in which "you get to a point in the future where you want it to be a purely support model."
"The Korean model is one in which the United States provides a security presence, but you've had the development of a successful democracy in South Korea over a period of years, and, therefore, the United States is there as a force of stability," Mr Snow told reporters.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said in a statement he believes it is time for Mr Bush to "recognize the reality on the ground in Iraq," that US troops are mired in an Iraqi civil war and a change in course is urgently needed. "Democrats know that Americans demand realistic plans, not more White House rhetoric, rosy predictions and best-case scenarios. Our troops and the American people deserve better," Mr Reid said.
Iraq's neighbours have raised concerns about the possibility of the United States maintaining permanent bases in Iraq, and some US lawmakers have said they think the Iraqi insurgency may have been fuelled by perceptions the United States wants a permanent presence in the country. Washington has consistently denied wanting permanent bases in Iraq.