US President George Bush’s State of the Union address today failed to stir much support in Asia, where many saw it as evidence he had been politically weakened by the war in Iraq.

US President George Bush used his State of the Union address to signal the US' continued support for “the cause of freedom” in Cuba, Myanmar and Belarus, countries the administration has labelled “outposts of tyranny”.

Iraqi politicians on both sides of the sectarian divide saw little new in US President George W Bush’s State of the Union address.

A politically-weakened George Bush implored a sceptical Congress to embrace his unpopular plan to send more US troops to Iraq, saying it was the best chance in a war the US must not lose.

Democrats challenged the buoyant picture of the US presented in President George W Bush’s State of the Union address, saying it belied a darker reality of lost jobs, rising deficits and mounting casualties in Iraq.

President George W Bush, wrapping the themes of his re-election campaign in his State of the Union address, asserted that the US is strengthening its economy and successfully combating terrorism.