(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-03-18 12:05

Cheney deemed the war a "difficult, challenging, but nonetheless successful endeavor" that has been "well worth the effort."

In Washington, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid accused Cheney of minimizing the costs and consequences of the war.

"It would be far better," Reid said, "if the vice president would explain how his administration intends to use its final months to find Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida's senior leadership -- neither of whom are in Iraq -- as well as how it intends to win the war in Afghanistan and address our military's readiness challenges that leave us unprepared for the next crisis."

Cheney did not cross paths with the GOP's expected presidential nominee, Arizona Sen. John McCain, who left Baghdad after a weekend visit.

Related readings:  Turk envoy tells Iraq no timetable for troop pullout  Official: US troop level in Iraq will be 140,000  Bush says Iraq troop withdrawal on track  Bush approves gradual troop cuts in Iraq  Cheney: US endeavor in Iraq successful  Studies: Iraq costs US $12b per month

The vice president brushed off Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent visit to Baghdad and said it was not widely discussed at his meetings with Iraqi leaders. Cheney said US allies in the Arab world should send ambassadors to Iraq as a counter to Iran, which is seeking a greater sphere of influence in the Middle East and is accused of supporting terrorists and extremists in Iraq.

In a country with the world's third-largest known crude oil reserves, Cheney acknowledged that the declining value of the US dollar was a factor in helping drive up global oil prices. He said another problem was that there was not a lot of excess capacity at a time when India, China and growing oil-producing nations themselves are seeking more energy.

Cheney met for about an hour with al-Maliki. He lauded the Iraqi government's legislative successes, but he also pointed to items left undone. The Iraqis do not yet have a law for sharing the nation's oil wealth among the Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds, a law that the Bush administration believes will trigger multinational energy companies to invest in exploration and production in Iraq.

Also unfinished is a plan for new provincial elections -- a subject discussed as Cheney lunched on chicken, rice and humus with Iraq's presidential council. The three-member council, which must give its nod to laws passed by the Iraqi parliament, rejected a plan for new elections last month, shipping it back to the legislature.

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