Bush admits errors in the rebuilding of Iraq

"US President George W Bush has acknowledged that the reconstruction of Iraq has "been uneven" and hobbled by corruption, misplaced priorities and insurgent attacks but maintains that "quiet, steady progress" will ultimately transform the country.
In an unusually stark assessment of the situation in Iraq, Bush described several strategic errors in managing a rebuilding effort that he said proceeded in "fits and starts."

By learning from its mistakes, Bush said, his administration has reshaped its approach and he held out two key cities as models of success to be replicated across Iraq.

"Reconstruction has not always gone as well as we had hoped, primarily because of the security challenges on the ground," Bush said. "Rebuilding a nation devastated by a dictator is a large undertaking. But it's even harder when terrorists are trying to blow up that which the Iraqis are trying to build. The terrorists and Saddamists have been able to slow progress, but they haven't been able to stop it.""
The Standard