US troops will stay in Iraq until the country is "on a path" to democracy, US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said today.
"There is no decision to pull out early, indeed quite the contrary," Mr Rumsfeld said on the Pacific island of Guam today.
"We will stay there as long as necessary to see that that country is put on a path" to democracy, he said.
Mr Rumsfeld said the initial plan had been for a transfer of sovereignty after a new Iraqi constitution was ratified and elections were held.
But he said this process would likely take about two years and that the Iraqi Governing Council and US administrator Mr Paul Bremer would try to find a way of transferring some responsibility before that.
"It does not mean that we would physically leave the country any sooner," Mr Rumsfeld said.
"What it means is that the Iraqis would begin to take on a greater portion of responsibility for governing themselves sooner than the original thought was with respect to first a constitution, then national elections because of the time involved."
He also said that Washington and its allies would outlast any opposition to the US-led military coalition in Iraq, despite the growing number of deadly attacks there.
"No," Mr Rumsfeld responded when asked by reporters on a flight from Guam to Japan whether the coalition was in trouble.
He said US-led forces were winning the guerrilla war despite attacks such as a bombing this week that killed 18 Italian troops.
But on the eve of Mr Rumsfeld's first trip to America's key allies in the Pacific since the Bush administration took office, Japan and South Korea rebuffed US requests to send troops to Iraq, citing the deteriorating security environment there.
"What's taking place is not a surprise," Mr Rumsfeld said.
"It is that the terrorists - the remnants of the regime - are going to school on us. And they watch what takes place and they make adjustments, just as we go to school on them, watch what takes place and make adjustments," he said.
"And the test is: Who is going to outlast the other? And the answer is: We're going to outlast them."