U.S. President George Bush marked the fifth anniversary of the U.S invasion of Iraq with a speech to an audience at the Pentagon Defense Department, defending the conflict as one that was necessary.

“Removing Saddam Hussein from power was the right decision—and this is a fight America can and must win,” claimed Bush in a statement prepared for delivery Wednesday at the Department of Defense. “Defeating this enemy in Iraq will make it less likely we will face this enemy here at home,” he added.

President Bush recognized in his prepared remarks that there have been difficult times: “A little over a year ago, the fight in Iraq was faltering. Extremist elements were succeeding in their efforts to plunge Iraq into chaos,” but named the U.S. intervention a success, as the strategy “has done more than turn the situation in Iraq around — it has opened the door to a major strategic victory in the broader war on terror.” Bush concluded with the warning that the recent success in Iraq is still fragile and reversible.

Democrat Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are also preparing speeches over the Iraq war. Clinton will talk to the military veterans in West Virginia while Obama will hold his speech in the southeastern state of North Carolina.

Local demonstrations and protests from the opponents of the war in Iraq will be held in downtown Appleton and in front of the Neville Public Museum in Green Bay, The New York Times report. Almost 4,000 Americans have been killed since the beginning of the war. However, the American troops will remain in Iraq to restore stability.