Biden visits Iraq as US troops depart

30 Nov 2011, 7:19 am   -   Source: AAP

US Vice President Joe Biden has arrived in Baghdad on a surprise visit as American troops depart Iraq ahead of a year-end deadline.

US Vice President Joe Biden has arrived in Baghdad on a surprise visit, during which he is due to meet top Iraqi officials, as American troops depart Iraq ahead of a year-end deadline.

Biden was met at the airport on Tuesday by US ambassador James Jeffrey and General Lloyd Austin, the commander of United States Forces - Iraq (USF-I).

He then boarded a helicopter to the US embassy in Baghdad, a reporter travelling with him said.

Biden's visit comes after a bloody seven days for Iraq, during which at least 61 people were killed in a wave of attacks.

The White House said that while in Iraq, "the vice president will co-chair a meeting of the US-Iraq Higher Coordinating Committee. He will also meet with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani, (and) Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi."

"The vice president will also participate in, and give remarks at, an event to commemorate the sacrifices and accomplishments of US and Iraqi troops."

It is Biden's eighth visit to Iraq since his election as vice president.

Biden's visit had not been previously announced by the White House, but he has been US President Barack Obama's point man in overseeing the withdrawal of all US troops from the country by the end of this year.

His visit to Iraq will be followed by a trip to Turkey and to Greece, which will see him press leaders on US preoccupations in the Middle East, including the crackdown in Syria, and in Europe, amid fears of a eurozone debt crisis.

According to his publicised schedule, Biden's next events after Iraq begin in Ankara on Friday, when he is due to meet Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul.

After Turkey, Biden will go to Athens on Monday for talks with Greek officials and party leaders.

Obama on October 21 announced that US troops would leave Iraq by the end of 2011, bringing to a close an almost nine-year war that has left thousands of US soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqis dead, and cost hundreds of billions of dollars.

About 13,800 US soldiers are still in the country, and seven US bases remain to be handed over, according to USF-I spokesman Major General Jeffrey Buchanan.

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