Iraq

US Vice President Dick Cheney met Iraqi leaders in Baghdad May 9 and was expected to press for more progress in meeting political benchmarks aimed at ending sectarian violence. Cheney’s unannounced visit, part of a Middle East tour, may signal growing US impatience at Shi’ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s failure to push through power-sharing agreements as American military commanders build up troops to secure Baghdad.(Reuters)