Bush promised to help the Iraqi government meet important objectives, including the passage of legislation on equitable distribution of oil revenues, and a de-Ba'athification law.

The meeting took place amid continuing violence in Iraq.

A suicide bomber killed up to 20 men at a police recruitment center in Fallujah on May 31. An Al-Qaeda-led group -- the Islamic State of Iraq -- claimed responsibility.

In Al-Ramadi, the capital of Al-Anbar Governate, a suicide truck bomber killed five and wounded 15 in an attack on a mobile phone center.

Also on May 31, an Iraqi cameraman working for the Associated Press was shot and killed in Baghdad.

The U.S. news organization said Saif M. Fakhry was shot twice while walking to a mosque near his home on his day off. AP said he was the organization's fifth employee to die in violence during the Iraq war.

Copyright (c) 2006. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org