(30 Aug 2010)
1. United States Vice President Joe Biden walking down aircraft steps and greeting Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, and outgoing US commander General Ray Odierno
2. Biden and Odierno walking across tarmac towards helicopters
3. Aerial shot, soldier looking out of back of helicopter
4. Interior, pan of Biden meeting with US military officers, from left to right: Odierno, (Biden), US Ambassador Jim Jeffrey, new leader of US Central Command Marine General James Mattis, and Lieutenant General Lloyd Austin, who is taking over from Odierno
STORYLINE:
United States Vice President Joe Biden returned to Iraq on Monday to mark the formal end to US combat operations and push the country's leaders to end a six-month stalemate blocking formation of a new government.
Biden came to preside over a military change-of-command ceremony on Wednesday.
The event will signal a shift toward a greater US diplomatic role as the military mission dwindles seven years after the American invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
Biden tried to reassure Iraqis on the transition.
During a photo opportunity at the US Embassy, Biden was flanked by General Ray Odierno, Ambassador Jim Jeffrey and Marine General James Mattis, the new leader of the US Central Command.
The September 1 ceremony also marks the start of the so-called "Operation New Dawn" - symbolising the beginning of the end of the American military's mission in Iraq since invading in March 2003.
Just under 50-thousand US troops remain in Iraq - down from a peak of nearly 170-thousand at the height of the 2007 military surge that is credited with helping turn the tide in Iraq as it teetered on the brink of civil war.
Additionally, US troops will no longer be allowed to go on combat missions unless requested and accompanied by Iraqi forces.
Underscoring the shift, officials said Biden will make a new appeal to Iraqi leaders, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and political archrival former premier Ayad Allawi, to end the political deadlock and seat a new government.
March 7 parliamentary elections left Iraq without a clear winner, and insurgents have exploited the uncertainty to hammer Iraqi security forces in near-daily attacks.
In a daylong meeting Tuesday, Biden will "urge Iraqi leaders to conclude negotiations on the formation of a new government," the White House said in a statement.
The White House said Biden also plans to sit down with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, Shiite Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi, and Shiite cleric Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the Iranian-backed Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council.
It was the vice president's sixth trip to Iraq since he was elected.
He will preside over a ceremony on Wednesday where Odierno ends more than five years in Iraq and hands over the reins as commander of US forces to Lieutenant General Lloyd Austin.
Austin also has served extensively in Iraq, most recently as commander of troop operations in 2008-09.
Under a security agreement between the two nations, all US forces must leave Iraq by the end of 2011.
But the Obama administration, sensitive to charges of American abandonment, has directed its diplomats to step into the void and help Iraq's weak government, economy and other institutions get back on their feet for years to come.
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