Cheney asks king to help with Iraq

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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) -- Vice President Dick Cheney sought Saudi help yesterday in dealing with Iraq's spiraling violence and other regional trouble spots where U.S. policy is on the line: Iran, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories.

Mr. Cheney's visit with King Abdullah was brief, lasting only a few hours before he flew back to Washington, but it underlined the two allies' concerns over upheavals across the Middle East, which many Arabs blame on U.S. policies.

In a sign of the urgency of the U.S. concern, President Bush is scheduled to meet with Iraq's prime minister in the Jordanian capital Wednesday and Thursday to discuss security matters.

The unusual succession of visits by the two U.S. leaders was planned before outbursts of violence last week dramatically worsened the situation in two countries of key American interest -- Iraq and Lebanon.

On Tuesday, an anti-Syrian Lebanese politician was gunned down in Beirut, highlighting the fragility of the U.S.-backed government and heightening tensions between that country's pro- and anti-Syrian forces.

Two days later in Iraq, suspected Sunni insurgents set off a series of car bombs that killed more than 200 people in a Shi'ite district of Baghdad, fueling an upsurge in the retaliatory sectarian slayings that threaten to tear the nation apart.

Mr. Cheney's meeting at Yamama Palace likely focused on both conflicts, as well as the Israeli-Palestinian front, which stands at a key crossroads amid attempts to form a new Palestinian government and get peace negotiations going.

The U.S. Embassy declined to comment on the discussions and Saudi officials were not available.

In Washington, House Majority Leader-elect Rep. Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland said U.S. support in Iraq will not go on forever.

"In the days ahead, the Iraqis must make the tough decisions and accept responsibility for their future. And, the Iraqis must know: Our commitment, while great, is not unending," Mr. Hoyer said in the Democratic response to Mr. Bush's weekly radio address.