Bush brands Iran, Syria 'outlaw regimes'

"We're determined to deny radical groups the support and sanctuary of outlaw regimes. State sponsors like Syria and Iran have a long history of collaboration with terrorists and they deserve no patience from the victims of terror," Bush said.

During the president's speech on terrorism, a heckler yelled: "Mr. President, what is terrorism? What is terrorism? Step down now." The man was escorted out and others in the audience booed the heckler.

The United States has repeatedly expressed concern over Iran and its nuclear energy programme, which it suspects could be a cover for nuclear weapons development. Iran insists the programme is intended for civilian electricity generation.

And Western countries condemned recent comments by Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calling for Israel to be wiped off the map.

Last year, the United States and its allies, in fighting proliferation of deadly weapons, "have stopped more than a dozen shipments of suspected weapons technology including equipment for Iran's ballistic missile programme," Bush said.

"This progress has reduced the danger to free nations, but it has not removed it," he said. "Evil men who want to use horrendous weapons against us are working in deadly earnest to gain them. And we are working urgently to keep weapons of mass murder out of the hands of the fanatics," Bush said.

Meanwhile, a revised Franco-US draft resolution demanding full cooperation from Damascus with the probe into the murder of Lebanon's ex-premier is likely to be readied for a vote by the UN Security Council Monday, diplomats said Friday.

The United States and France said they had made good progress in securing broad support for the text, which is co-sponsored by Britain.

Despite lingering opposition from some members to the mention of sanctions against the Syrian state specifically, the co-sponsors said they were confident the draft would be approved by most Security Council foreign ministers when they gather at a special council session Monday.

The 15 council members huddled Friday to fine-tune the revised text of the Franco-US draft resolution, co-sponsored by Britain, which still threatens Syria with economic and diplomatic sanctions if it does not fully cooperate with the probe into the slaying of Lebanese former premier Rafiq Hariri last February.