Outgoing British leader Tony Blair arrived in Iraq on Saturday for his seventh — and final — visit as prime minister, hoping to press Baghdad to call new provincial elections and increase efforts to bring those linked to violence into the political process. Blair, who was making an unannounced visit before he steps down from office in June, also planned to reassure Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki that his departure will not bring an end to Britain's support. The British leader, whose premiership has been dominated by his unpopular decision to join the 2003 invasion to topple Saddam Hussein, arrived in Iraq via Kuwait, following talks in Washington with President George W. Bush on Thursday, the Associated Press reported. Blair told a Rose Garden news conference that Britain's next leader, current Treasury chief Gordon Brown, would continue to back al-Maliki's government, saying Iraq was a critical battleground in the fight against global terrorism. Talks with al-Maliki and President Jalal Talabani were to center on speeding up reconciliation between divided communities, British officials said.
