By Xinhua
Washington : US President George W. Bush Wednesday marked the fifth anniversary of the Iraq war by saying that was a “right decision” while Americans staged anti-war demonstrations across the nation.
“Removing Saddam Hussein from power was the right decision, and this is a fight America can and must win,” Bush told an audience at the Pentagon,
But he acknowledged that the Iraq war that was waged March 20, 2003 became “harder and more costly than anticipated”.
A number of demonstrations and protests were staged and scheduled in major cities across the country Wednesday, calling for the end of the war and withdrawal of US troops from Iraq.
A poll released by CNN Wednesday showed that about 66 percent of those surveyed opposed the Iraq war and 61 percent Americans said that troop withdrawal should begin in months after the new president takes office next year.
So far, the Iraq war has cost US taxpayers billions of US dollars and lives of nearly 4,000 US troops. It was cited as the main reason for the country to suffer from the current economic slowdown and the deteriorated international image.