DATE=NOVEMBER 1, 2003

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=BUSH/IRAQ (S)

NUMBER=2-309309

BYLINE=SCOTT STEARNS

DATELINE=WHITE HOUSE

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: Six months after he declared an end to major combat in Iraq, President Bush says U-S troops will continue their mission there, despite daily attacks. V-O-A's Scott Stearns reports, the president is trying to focus on the positives in Iraq.

TEXT: This was a rough week for security in Baghdad, with bombings at the International Red Cross and more attacks on local police stations and U-S forces.

President Bush took stock of that violence in his weekly radio address, saying some of the attackers are Saddam loyalists and others are foreign terrorists. But both groups, he says, will fail to drive out U-S troops.

/// BUSH ACT ///

The United States will complete our work in Iraq. Leaving Iraq prematurely would only embolden the terrorists and increase the danger to America. We are determined to stay, to fight and to win.

/// END ACT ///

Mr. Bush again laid-out a strategy for Iraq, which includes taking the fight to the enemy, training more Iraqi security forces and encouraging the interim Governing Council to draft a new constitution.

The president has been critical of media reports, which he says focus too much on what is going wrong in Iraq. He says U-S troops are making progress in seizing weapons. As security improves, he says, more Iraqis will step forward to play a direct role in the rebirth of their country. (SIGNED)

NEB/SKS/TW