BUSAN, South Korea - US President George W. Bush, in his latest rhetorical broadside at critics of the war in Iraq, argued Saturday that setting a date for pulling out US forces was "a recipe for disaster".

"We will fight the terrorists in Iraq, and we will stay in the fight until we have achieved the victory our brave troops have fought and bled for," he said, as US lawmakers bitterly debated a bill calling for a withdrawal.

Bush's comments came in remarks prepared for delivery at a US Air Force Base in Osan, South Korea. The White House released excerpts of the speech as the president wrapped up a three-day stay here and prepared to visit China.

Bush has seen his popularity at home plummet amid rising casualties in Iraq, a growing chorus of calls for a clear, precise exit strategy from the war-torn country and multiplying appeals for a specific pullout date.

"In Washington there are some who say that the sacrifice is too great, and they urge us to set a date for withdrawal before we have completed our mission. Those who are in the fight know better," he said.

"One of our top commanders in Iraq, Major General William Webster, says that setting a deadline for our withdrawal from Iraq would be 'a recipe for disaster'. General Webster is right," said Bush.

The US president also made the case that US military sacrifices were crucial to building democracy in Japan and South Korea, and held out the hope that Iraq could follow their example.

"Three years of war made America and Korea enduring allies in the struggle for liberty. And five decades of sacrifice by the men and women of our Armed Forces secured peace and democracy on this peninsula," he said.

"By promoting freedom in Japan, we helped transform an enemy into a democracy that is one of the worlds most prosperous nations and one of Americas most trusted allies," Bush declared.

The speech came as the US House of Representatives took up a resolution, authored by a respected moderate member of the opposition Democratic party, calling for the immediate withdrawal of US troops.

Bush's Republicans were confident of defeating the legislation -- but the bombshell proposal has heightened growing animosity between the two major parties because of splits on Iraq and other major policies.

Representative David Dreier, a prominent Republican, said "it would be criminal for the United States of America to do anything other than maintain our resolve in that quest" to stabilize Iraq.

Representative John Murtha, a respected Democrat considered strong on national security issues, stunned Washington earlier this week with his call for an immediate withdrawal, three years after he voted for the Iraq war.

"Our military has done everything that has been asked of them, the US cannot accomplish anything further in Iraq militarily," Murtha, a decorated Vietnam War veteran, said Thursday.

"It's time to bring them home," he added.

Murtha's new position drew a swift attack from the White House, which accused the centrist, hawkish Democrat of wanting to "surrender to the terrorists" a month before general elections in Iraq set for December 15.

"The eve of an historic democratic election in Iraq is not the time to surrender to the terrorists," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in a statement released Friday as Bush attended an Asia-Pacific summit here.

"Congressman Murtha is a respected veteran and politician who has a record of supporting a strong America," said McClellan.

"After seeing his statement, we remain baffled -- nowhere does he explain how retreating from Iraq makes America safer."

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