Biden Meets With Iraqi Leaders During Trip Abroad

January 12, 2009 3:21 p.m. EST

Baghdad, Iraq (AHN) - Vice President-elect Joe Biden arrived in Baghdad on Monday, following previous stops in Afghanistan and Pakistan during his tour of U.S. battlefronts one week before inauguration.

During his visit to military zones, Biden met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani as well as one of his deputies, Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi, but did not make any public statements.

Meanwhile, back in Washington, President George W. Bush prepared to transfer power to his successor president-elect Barack Obama, yet continued to stand by his policies during his eight years in office.

Defending his choice to send in a surge of 30,000 U.S. troops to help lower violence and stabilize daily life in war-ravaged Iraq, Bush told reporters that history will judge his actions.

"The question is, in the long run, will this democracy survive, and that's going to be a question for future presidents," he told reporters.