BAGHDAD — Vice President Joe Biden pressed Iraqi leaders Wednesday to approve as quickly as possible legislation that establishes rules for the planned January general election and to make the next round of bids to develop Iraqi oil concessions more attractive to foreign investors.
In a series of meetings, Biden listened to the concerns of Iraqi leaders, now in the heat of an election season that Obama administration officials acknowledge will delay until after the vote any progress on such pressing issues as passing a law dividing up national oil revenues.
But a senior administration official said Biden also made his interests known on issues ranging from the need for the Iraqi parliament to adopt laws to better protect foreign investment to leaving unchanged the terms of the withdrawal timetable for the 130,000 U.S. troops now in the country.
Biden’s visit comes as the Obama administration is trying to manage a growing Iraqi impatience with the U.S. military presence.
Baghdad’s Green Zone was attacked by rocket fire for a second night Wednesday, just after Biden and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki sat down for a traditional dinner to break the Ramadan fast.
One rocket landed on the edge of the American Embassy compound, about a mile from the building where the two leaders met, wounding several people at a security company, according to the Ministry of the Interior.
A second landed on the opposite side of the Tigris River near the Babylon Hotel, a towering landmark in the cityscape, killing one and wounding two, a ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity under the ministry’s rules.
Not long after Biden’s arrival Tuesday afternoon, similar attacks killed two and wounded five.
Neither Biden nor al-Maliki directly addressed the attacks.
The New York Times contributed to this report.
