Interview on CBS's Early Show With Hannah Storm

SECRETARY RICE: Good morning.

QUESTION: Secretary Rice, over 3,200 American troops have died, almost ten times that number are injured, an untold number of Iraqis are dead, 1.5 million people estimated to be displaced, the costs of this war in the hundreds of billions of dollars. In the worst case scenario, could you have ever envisioned that four years later, this is where we would be?

SECRETARY RICE: Well, it's clearly been more difficult than I think we would have thought at the time, principally because in this last year, the sectarian violence has grown very much worse and it was sectarian violence that was instigated by al-Qaida and leaders like Zarqawi who intended to set the Iraqi people against one another.

But we also have to remember that this is an extremely difficult historical change from tyranny to a freer society and the 12.5 million people who voted, the overthrow of one of the bloodiest tyrants in the Middle East, a man who had caused undue turmoil in the region, including drawing America into a war 15 years ago, those are also accomplishments of this period. The Iraqis are getting stronger. The Iraqis themselves are taking more responsibility and so there is a chance for the Iraqi people to build a more stable and democratic Iraq and in doing so, a more stable and democratic Middle East, which will certainly make us safer.

QUESTION: Secretary Rice, when you look back, what is the biggest Administration -- what's the biggest mistake that this Administration made regarding this war?

SECRETARY RICE: Oh, I don't doubt, Hannah, that when we look back over time, we will know the answer to that question. But I'm one who, from history, knows that it's hard to judge when you're in the middle of something. I will say this; I do believe that we might have looked to a more localized, more decentralized approach in reconstruction assistance of the kind that we're now doing through provincial reconstruction teams. And I do believe that the kind of counter-insurgency strategy that General Petraeus is now pursuing, in which we have enough forces to clear an area and then hold it so that building and governance can emerge, is the best strategy and that was probably not pursued at the very beginning.

QUESTION: And even as we do have these additional troops as you mentioned on their way to Iraq, yesterday, Defense Secretary Gates said on Face the Nation that this war is not going to be solved by the military; it has to involve political reconciliation in Iraq among Iraqis.

How and when does this war end?

SECRETARY RICE: Well, there is no doubt that political reconciliation is critical and the Iraqis are pursuing that. They've passed a national oil law which would divide the resources of the country evenly by population among the various groups and that's a big step forward because that says that people will be able to share in the wealth of Iraq, whether they are Sunni or Shia or Kurdish.

But we have to recognize that change of this type takes some time. And Hannah, I recognize too that the American people are concerned, they are skeptical about where this is going, and I want to recognize too the sacrifice that many families, many people have made. That's irrevocable. We are never going to be able to replace the lives that have been lost. But nothing of value is ever won without sacrifice and I do believe that these are sacrifices that will ultimately lead to a better Middle East and to greater security for America as we try to fight this long war on terrorism.

Thank you.