Biden meets Barzani, Talabani in Arbil (Roundup)

Sep 17, 2009, 17:39 GMT

   Baghdad - US Vice President Joe Biden met Thursday in Arbil with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani as well as with Massoud Barzani, the president of the autonomous region of Kurdistan.

   According to earlier reports, Biden and Barzani were to discuss ways of boosting US-Iraq relations, US-Kurdish relations and relations between Baghdad and Arbil.

At a red-carpet greeting, Biden extended his hand to Barzani, saying, 'So good to see you. Thank you for having me.'

'It's an honour to be here. I didn't bring a sandstorm this time,' Biden greeted Barzani as saying, according to a pool report.

After the meeting, Biden said that Barzani is 'negotiating in good faith with the central government' and that Barzani noted that he can only resolve the outstanding issues 'through the application of the constitution and good relations with the central government.'

'We know these are difficult issues. If they weren't, they would have been resolved a long time ago,' Biden said.

Baghdad and Arbil have been at odds over several issues. The Kurdish regional government in Arbil and the central Iraqi government in Baghdad both claim land and hydrocarbon resources bordering the semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

The meeting took place amidst tight security measures as several roads were blocked off for motorcade and security forces were intensively deployed on the streets. Strings of US, Iraqi and Kurdish flags decorated the streets, according to the Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

   Biden arrived in Iraq Tuesday and met with officials including Ayad al-Samarrai, the speaker of the parliament and Vice-President Tariq al-Hashemi.

   Violence continued across Baghdad during Biden's visit. Rockets fell Wednesday night near Baghdad's heavily fortified zone, soon after Biden ended a meeting with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

   Police told the German Press Agency dpa that one rocket landed near the Babil Hotel in the neighbourhood of Jabariya, directly across the Tigris river from the Green Zone, wounding two people.

   It was the second such attack in as many nights after Biden arrived. The Mujahedin Army insurgent group claimed responsibility, calling the rocket attacks a 'reception' for Biden.

   Biden made no reference to Tuesday's rocket attacks, mentioning only a series of blasts that shook Baghdad on August 19 that left at least 95 people dead, more than 1,200 wounded and destroyed much of the ministries of foreign affairs and finance.

   On Thursday, Biden told reporters accompanying him that the lack of sectarian reprisals following the August 19 bombing was 'a mark of real maturation' of the Iraqi people and government.

   Throughout his meetings on Wednesday, exchanging gifts and joking with Iraqi officials, Biden appeared unfazed by the lethal rocket attacks that had greeted his arrival in Baghdad the night before.

   'You can't get rid of me,' Biden joked when meeting Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdel-Mahdi. 'I just keep coming back.'

   This is the US vice president's third visit this year to Iraq, following trips in January and July.