US President George W. Bush said Tuesday that the United States will not waver in face of tough time in Iraq and will stick with its plan to transfer sovereignty to Iraqis by June 30.

"We will succeed in Iraq. We're carrying out a decision that has already been made and will not change," Bush said at a prime time press conference held in the White House.

"No one can predict all the hazards that lie ahead of the coststhey will bring. Yet in this conflict, there is no safe alternative to resolute action," he said. "The consequences of failure in Iraq would be unthinkable."

Bush said the United States will stick to the June 30 deadline to return sovereignty to Iraqis despite widespread insurgency in Iraq over the past two weeks which reportedly had killed over 80 US soldiers since April 1.

"We will not step back from our pledge. On June 30, Iraqi sovereignty will be placed in Iraqi hands," he said.

He said the United States is working closely with the United Nations envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, and with Iraqis to determine the exact form of the government that will receive sovereignty on June30.

After Iraqis regain their sovereignty, Bush said, the United States and all the nations of US coalition will establish normal diplomatic relations with the new Iraqi government.

"An American embassy will open, and an American ambassador willbe posted," he said.

Source: Xinhua