The US President, George W Bush, has repeated that all Syrian troops must be withdrawn from Lebanon ahead of elections there in May.
In a speech on the global war on terror delivered at the National Defense University in Washington, he demanded that Syria and Iran stop using murder as a tool of policy and to end any support for terrorist groups.
His comments came as hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Lebanon's capital, Beirut, to support Syria's role in the country and reject what they see as Western interference.
It is the first major show of support for Syria since opposition protests began last month for Syrian troops to leave.
The rally was organised by the powerful pro-Syrian Shia organisation Hizbollah.
The demonstration comes as Syrian forces moved to eastern areas as part of a pull-back plan adopted by Lebanese and Syrian leaders in Damascus yesterday.
The US has led calls for a complete Syrian withdrawal, in line with a UN resolution, which it sponsored.
