Cheney visits Saudi for talks on Middle East

RIYADH, Nov 25 (Reuters) US Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Saudi Arabia today for talks with King Abdullah on the West Asia.

He was met in Riyadh by Crown Prince Abdullah, government ministers and leaders of the Saudi armed forces, before travelling to the US embassy in the Saudi capital and the monarch's palace for what a spokeswoman said would be ''comprehensive'' talks on regional issues.

''The vice president is looking forward to meeting with King Abdullah, a strong ally, to discuss regional issues of mutual interest,'' said Lea Anne McBride, Cheney's spokeswoman, With Iraq near all-out civil war, the Bush administration is renewing efforts to break the cycle of violence there by enlisting the help of moderate Arab nations.

President George W Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki are due to meet next week.

The United States wants Saudi Arabia to use its influence with Iraq's Sunni minority to help stabilise the country. On Thursday, car bombs killed more than 200 people in a Shi'ite stronghold in Baghdad in the worst attack since U.S.-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Bush and Maliki will discuss security in Iraq at their meeting, in what is shaping up to be a crisis summit.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will also join Bush in Amman. She will then attend an annual Middle East conference in Jordan, where key Arab players may meet on the sidelines to discuss Arab-Israeli issues.

The surge in violence in Iraq came as US public discontent with the Iraq war was hammered home in November 7 elections in which Bush's Republican Party lost control of both houses of Congress.

REUTERS PDM HS1811