U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Saudi Arabia's northern town of Tabuk on Saturday after he concluded his visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Cheney was given a red-carpet arrival ceremony at the airport and met with King Abdullah at a royal palace in Tabuk after his arrival.

According to earlier media reports, Cheney would hold talks with King Abdullah to seek Riyadh's help in Iraq, two months after the Saudi monarch slammed the "illegitimate foreign occupation" of the war-torn neighbor.

In a speech at the opening session of the 19th annual Arab summit in Riyadh on March 28, King Abdullah denounced the "illegitimate foreign occupation" of Iraq, which have incited "ugly sectarianism" that threatens civil war.

Cheney arrived Thursday in the UAE, the second leg of his Middle East tour, after a two-day surprise visit to Iraq in a fresh effort to press Iraqi leaders to achieve reconciliation among rival factions.

Earlier on Saturday before his arrival in Saudi Arabia, the U.S. vice president met and held talks with UAE President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan on ways to enhance bilateral relations in addition to the latest developments in the region.

After a brief visit to Saudi Arabia, Cheney will head to Egypt and Jordan to wrap up a week-long Middle East visit, according to his arrangements.

Cheney started his Middle East tour on May 9, which was launched with an aim to encourage Washington's Arab allies to help pull Iraq's minority Sunni Muslims into the country's fragile political process and curb the influence of a rising Iran.

Source: Xinhua