With his popularity dipping because of the Iraq war, an embattled President George W Bush appealed to a bitterly opposed US Congress to give his new strategy for the war-torn country 'a chance' as the results of a failure would be 'grievous and far-reaching.'

A sombre Bush facing a Democrat-controlled Congress stood his ground on foreign policy, especially on issues pertaining to terrorism, during his seventh state-of-union address on Tuesday, and maintained that in order to win the war terror the 'fight must be taken to the enemy.'

"Many in this chamber understand that America must not fail in Iraq, because you understand that the consequences of failure would be grievous and far reaching," the President warned lawmakers.

"Our country is pursuing a new strategy in Iraq, and I ask you to give it a chance to work. And I ask you to support our troops in the field and those on their way. Both parties and both branches should work in close consultation. That's why I have proposed to establish a special advisory council on the war on terror, made up of leaders in Congress from both political parties. We will share ideas on how to position America to meet every challenge that confronts us," the President said.

The Congress has been bitterly opposing plans to send 20,000 additional troops to Iraq to tackle the growing insurgency in the country.

Conceding that the present conditions in Iraq were not something expected, he said, "This is not the fight we entered in Iraq, but it is the fight we are in."

"Yet it would not be like us to leave our promises un-kept, our friends abandoned, and our own security at risk... on this day, at this hour, it is still within our power to shape the outcome of this battle. Let us find our resolve and turn events toward victory," Bush said.

"We are carrying out a new strategy in Iraq, a plan that demands more from Iraq's elected government and gives our forces in Iraq the reinforcements they need to complete their mission. Our goal is a democratic Iraq that upholds the rule of law, respects the rights of its people, provides them security and is an ally in the war on terror," he said.

"In order to make progress, Baghdad must stop sectarian violence, but it is unable at the present juncture to go about on its own. So we are deploying reinforcements of more than 20,000 additional soldiers and marines to Iraq. The vast majority will go to Baghdad, where they will help Iraqi forces to clear and secure neighbourhoods, and serve as advisers embedded in Iraqi army units," he added.

Brushing aside calls for a more pragmatic and multifaceted approach to the various challenges facing the world, Bush insisted that the core focus of his administration remained on countering violent extremists in the 'broader middle east.'