Pledging ‘full support’ to India as it recovers from the deadly terror strikes on Mumbai, US President George W Bush on Sunday said the strength and resilience of the people of the country would enable them to ‘withstand the trial’.

Terrorists will not have the last word and the financial capital of India will continue to be the "centre of commerce and prosperity," Bush said at the South Lawn of the White House upon his return from Camp David in Washington on Sunday.

"We pledge the full support of the United States as India investigates these attacks, brings the guilty to justice and sustains its democratic way of life," he said.

Asserting that terrorists will not have the last word, Bush said Indians can count on the support of the US as they recover from the crisis.

"The killers struck this week are brutal and violent, but terror will not have the final word. People of India are

resilient, people of India are strong, they have built a vibrant, multi-ethnic democracy, they can withstand this trial. Their financial capital Mumbai would continue to be the centre of commerce and prosperity," he said.

"As the people of the world's largest democracy recover from these attacks, they can count on the world's oldest democracy to stand by their side," he added.

Bush, who had spoken to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday, said the leaders of India can know that the nations around the world support them "in the face of this assault on human dignity".