Bush urges allies to show 'backbone'

President George Bush, on the eve of another face-off at the United Nations over disarming Iraq, tonight urged sceptical allies to “show backbone and courage” and stand up to Saddam Hussein.

“I believe when it’s all said and done, free nations will not allow the United Nations to fade into history as an ineffective, irrelevant debating society,” the president told US forces at a Naval station in Florida

Administration leaders faced questions in Congress about the showdown with Iraq.

Secretary of State Colin Powell said Americans should be “prepared for a fairly long-term commitment” in Iraq.

Appearing before the House Budget Committee, Powell said he could furnish no estimate of the cost of any war with Iraq.

But he did say he thought that Arab nation should be able to adjust quickly after a war – in contrast to the slow pace of recovery in Afghanistan.

Iraq has an effective bureaucracy, rich oil resources and a developed middle class, Powell said.

“I would hope that it would be a short conflict and that it would be directed at the leadership, not the society,” he said.

Once those goals are achieved, Powell said, the US military leader in such a war would take temporary charge of Iraq.

But that person would give way to a prominent American or international figure, whose own term would be limited with an eye toward turning over the government to the Iraqis themselves, the secretary of state said.

“We would try to build as much as we can on the structure that is there,” Powell said.

“The challenge would be to put in place a representative leadership.”

At another hearing, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was asked by Senator Evan Bayh about the future of Nato following a dispute with allies over defending Turkey, Rumsfeld joked ”I have a feeling you’re trying to put me in a position of defending Germany or France.”

Bayh replied: “It’s hard to defend the indefensible.”

Rumsfeld said that while he is disappointed by the dispute, he believes the alliance is important.

He recalled that the alliance has survived past disputes. “It’s never been perfect. it’s always been bumpy,” he said.