BAGHDAD --Vice President Joe Biden on Monday made a final effort to push Iraqi leaders to bridge their differences, which have created a dangerous political vacuum as US troops head home. The vice president met with senior Iraqi officials, including President Jalal Talabani, before wrapping up a Fourth of July visit designed to help Iraq overcome a four-month post-election stalemate in efforts to form a new government. During the trip, Biden urged rival Iraqi politicians to select new leaders for their wobbly democracy without further delays, emphasizing that a government that does not represent all sides would not be successful. Iraq has been without a new government since the March 7 election, which produced no clear winner. The bickering between opposing political blocs vying to lead the country has raised fears that insurgents could exploit the uncertainty to re-ignite sectarian violence. Biden's discussions with Talabani focused on ways to move the political process forward, Talabani said in a statement, without giving details. Speaking to reporters before the meeting, Talabani also said the two would discuss ways to enhance Iraq-U.S. relations after the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq. On Monday, Biden also met with Shiite cleric Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the Iranian-backed Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council. In a statement on his website, al-Hakim welcomed the meeting but down played any American influence on the formation of the new government, saying it was "purely an Iraqi national affair". Biden, who was on his fifth trip to Iraq during the Fourth of July weekend, spoke little to reporters during a visit that began Saturday. During separate meetings Sunday with two men who claim the right to head Iraq's new government, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki former premier Ayad Allawi, Biden said the major political blocs, including Iraqiya, State of Law, the Iraqi National Alliance and the Kurdish Alliance should be included in the new government.
