Bournemouth, Sept 28: British Prime Minister Tony Blair today insisted he had no regrets at all about taking Britain into the war against Iraq, despite increasing public dissatisfaction about the conflict. Speaking shortly before the start of what is set to be a hugely difficult annual conference of his ruling Labour Party, Blair insisted he had done nothing wrong in backing the US-led campaign to remove Saddam Hussein.
"No. I would have done exactly the same," Blair said when asked whether, in hindsight, he had any regrets.
"I don't think we have anything to apologise for as a country," Blair said in a combative performance in a show on BBC Television. "I believe as powerfully as I did at the time that making sure that that man is no longer in charge of Iraq is a good thing for his country, the region and the world,” he said.
"I don't apologise for Iraq. I am proud of what we have done," a tired looking but determined Prime Minister said from the southern English seaside resort of Bournemouth.
Blair's popularity has slumped in the wake of the Iraq war, principally over allegations that his government misled the British public about the danger faced from Saddam's weapons of mass destruction. According to a poll released on Sunday almost half of all voters, including many labour supporters, want Blair to quit over his handling of the Iraq war.
Blair's Labour Party has also fallen to its lowest level of support since 1987, a decade before Blair won his first general election. Bureau Report