BRUSSELS, Feb 22: NATO leaders on Tuesday agreed to join an expanded training mission for Iraqi security officials giving US President George W. Bush an important victory in his drive to mend fences with Europe after acrimony over the Iraq war.

The alliance's leaders also pledged to boost NATO's prestige by giving it more political clout. The NATO initiative to train Iraqi security personnel is much less ambitious than earlier American calls that the organization send soldiers to the country. But an upbeat President Bush welcomed NATO's new mission in Iraq, saying: "Every contribution matters. Twenty-six nations sitting around the table said it is vital to be in Iraq."

Given continuing sharp differences over the Iraq war some countries such as Germany and France are opting to run the training programmes only outside Iraq. Some NATO states are sending instructors to Baghdad but others are providing either equipment or funding for the operation. But President Bush, who is on a four-day European tour to heal wounds caused by Iraq war differences, chose to put a positive spin on the NATO initiative. "We liberated Iraq. That decision has been made - it's time to move on," he told reporters.

The US leader said the NATO remained the cornerstone of transatlantic relations, adding: "The NATO is the most successful alliance in the history of the world." President Bush firmly backed NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, who is calling for the alliance to be given a far bigger political role in global security issues.

European leaders spotlighted the US president's changed approach to the EU following at least two years of deep rifts caused by the Iraq war. "Earlier the Americans pointed at the divisions of Europe but now the president speaks of the necessity of a strong Europe," said Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt.

French President Jacques Chirac - who was President Bush's biggest opponent over the Iraq conflict - said he was convinced the US approach to the EU had changed. The US president said relations between the US and the EU were "vital, necessary and important".