WASHINGTON - President Bush said yesterday that Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, would "have all the time he needs" to decide how and when to reduce American forces after the additional troops that were sent last year in a temporary surge are withdrawn by the end of July.

A sometimes defiant Bush gave a status report on Iraq to members of veterans organizations at the White House, saying that the U.S. troop surge had been a success.

"Fifteen months ago, America and the Iraqi government were on the defensive," the president said. "Today, we have the initiative."

His message alternated between insistence that Iraq continued to need a strong U.S. presence and a promise to provide U.S. soldiers more time at home.

The withdrawal of the additional brigades, scheduled to be completed by July 31, will drop the U.S. troop level down to 140,000, or 8,000 more than when the spring 2007 buildup began.

The president's speech was filled with reminders of the difficult political situation he faces at home.

It was notable that he spoke not in prime time, but in late morning. His public approval rating hit a new low of 28 percent in an AP-Ipsos polling issued yesterday.

Democrats have warned that they would try to put limits on the $102 billion in war funding that is expected to be debated in Congress next month.

They also have suggested that they might use the bill to help boost the economy by including in it money for transportation projects and unemployment and food-stamp benefits.

Saying that "America's limited resources cannot support his limitless war," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) accused Bush of "leaving all the tough decisions to the next administration. President Bush has an exit strategy for only one man, himself, on Jan. 20, 2009."

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, said yesterday that he now saw no chance that the number of U.S. troops in Iraq would drop to 100,000 by the end of the year, as he had forecast last fall.

Bush's former secretary of state, Colin L. Powell, said yesterday that Bush's successor, Republican or Democrat, would have to come to grips with the reality that the United States could not continue to keep large numbers of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan - but also could not withdraw precipitously.

"Whichever one of them becomes president on Jan. 1, 2009, they will face a military force that cannot continue to sustain 140,000 people deployed in Iraq and the 20-odd or 25,000 people we have deployed in Afghanistan and our other deployments," he said.

Bush used the speech to remind Congress that he still saw Iraq as a noble, successful cause.

"Members of Congress must pass a bill that provides our troops the resources they need and does not tie the hands of our commanders or impose artificial timelines for withdrawal," he said. "This bill also must be fiscally responsible."

Bush said that Army combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan would be cut to 12 months from the current 15, beginning with deployments made after Aug. 1. He also pledged that Army units would have at least a year at home for every year in the field.

Bush also challenged Iran, which the United States accuses of funding and training militants in Iraq. "If Iran makes the right choice, America will encourage a peaceful relationship between Iran and Iraq," Bush said. If it makes the wrong choice, Bush said, "America will act to protect our interests, and our troops, and our Iraqi partners."

Bush's address came after two days of congressional testimony by Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan C. Crocker. Members of Congress from both parties made it clear that they were frustrated by the war, which has claimed more than 4,000 American lives over five years.

Lawmakers sent strong messages to the administration this week that they would engage in a tough debate over war funding next month.

But Bush indicated that he was ready for a fight, threatening to veto any war-funding bill he did not like. He also took aim at congressional critics who said the war was costing too much - an estimated $500 billion so far.

"There's no doubt that the costs of this war have been high," Bush said. But he said a bigger share of the gross domestic product went to the Pentagon budget during other periods of conflict, including the Cold War.

Bush said he was accepting the recommendation of his military advisers to reduce the number of U.S. combat brigades in Iraq by 25 percent by the end of July.

"Beyond that," he said, "Gen. Petraeus says he'll need time to consolidate his forces and assess how this reduced American presence will affect conditions on the ground before making measured recommendations on further reductions."

General Asked Nations To Help at Iraq Borders

Gen. David H. Petraeus revealed yesterday that he had made quiet visits to several Mideast countries as part of diplomatic efforts to slow the flow of foreign fighters into Iraq.

Petraeus said he and other

U.S. military and intelligence officials had traveled to several countries, including some identified as sources of

foreign fighters who cross the borders into Iraq.

"I've actually gone to a couple of neighboring countries in an effort, again, to get at the networks, the countries in which they operate, and the sources of some of these foreign fighters," Petraeus said.

He did not name the countries he visited. The Associated Press has learned that his

trips - all taken since September - were to Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

Washington has complained repeatedly that Iran and Syria have not done enough to prevent foreign fighters from crossing their borders into Iraq.

- Associated Press