BAGHDAD , Iraq ( CNN ) -- Sen. Barack Obama and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on Monday discussed a `` general time horizon '' for any American troop withdrawals from Iraq , al-Maliki 's office said . Sen. Barack Obama rides in a helicopter Monday with Gen. David Petraeus in Baghdad , Iraq . Obama -- who has made ending the Iraq war a cornerstone of his run for office -- engaged in what were described as productive talks with al-Maliki during a trip to Iraq . The Iraqi government has been pushing for the United States to set a general timetable to spell out troop withdrawals . Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi also met with Obama Monday and told reporters afterward they discussed the security agreement . `` I told Sen. Obama ( that ) Iraqi and American negotiations regarding this are ongoing , and today new Iraqi-American negotiations on this agreement have started with Iraqi written proposals and have a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq , '' he said . The Bush administration has opposed timetables for troop withdrawals . But al-Maliki and President Bush last week agreed to a `` general time horizon for meeting aspirational goals '' on troop cuts . The prime minister reiterated that principle with Obama , according to a statement from al-Maliki 's office . `` Developments of the situation and the circumstances is what will decide the presence of foreign troops in Iraq , but without keeping open-ended dates , '' al-Maliki said , according to a statement from his office . `` With the developments on the ground , we can set a vision and clear horizons regarding this issue , and this is a view both sides agree on in the ongoing negotiations . '' Al-Maliki 's office quoted Obama as saying he is `` supportive and committed to preserving the gains achieved by the Iraqi government '' under al-Maliki 's leadership and that he admires the prime minister 's courage . Obama has proposed withdrawing U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months of taking office . Spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said the Iraqi government 's `` vision '' is that most U.S. combat troops would be out of Iraq by 2010 . Asked if that stance is part of the current negotiations , al-Dabbagh said , `` No . This is the Iraqi vision . '' iReport.com : Tell us the most important thing the next president needs to know about Iraq . A German magazine on Saturday quoted al-Maliki as saying he backed Obama 's proposal , but al-Dabbagh has said that his remarks `` were misunderstood , mistranslated and not conveyed accurately . '' In a statement Sunday , the magazine , Der Spiegel , said it `` stands by its version of this interview . '' In the magazine interview , al-Maliki did not indicate that he was endorsing Obama over Sen. John McCain , the presumptive Republican nominee . McCain does not think American troops should return to the United States until Iraqi forces are capable of maintaining a safe , democratic state . He has been a strong advocate of the `` surge '' -- the 2007 escalation of U.S. troops -- and has said troops should stay in Iraq as long as needed . Louisiana Gov . Bobby Jindal -- who 's been mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick for McCain -- on Monday criticized Obama 's push to remove troops in 16 months as an `` arbitrary timetable based on politics versus a plan based on the actual results on the ground . '' `` One of the reasons I 'm supporting [ McCain ] -- he has made it clear he would rather lose an election than lose a war . He 's made it very clear -- let 's listen to the commanders on the ground , '' Jindal said on CNN 's `` American Morning . '' McCain last week chided Obama for laying out his plans for Iraq and Afghanistan before talking to Gen. David Petraeus , the head of U.S. troops in Iraq . Obama met with Petraeus and Ryan Crocker , the U.S. ambassador to Iraq , in Baghdad on Monday . He also met with Tariq al-Hashimi , a Sunni Arab who is one of Iraq 's two vice presidents ; Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin , commander of Multi-National Corps-Iraq ; British Maj. Gen. Barney White Spunner , commander of Multi-National Division South East ; and Maj. General Abdul Aziz , the Iraqi army 's 14th Division commander . Obama 's stop in Iraq marks his second visit to the country . The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee 's trip abroad began in Kuwait and Afghanistan and will go on to Jordan , Israel , the West Bank , Germany , France and Britain . The senator from Illinois first visited Iraq in 2006 . See the stops on Obama 's trip » . Obama arrived Monday afternoon in the southern city of Basra , according to U.S. Embassy spokesman Armand Cucciniello . Obama is traveling with Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island , a leading Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee , and Sen. Chuck Hagel , a Nebraska Republican who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee and is an outspoken critic of the Iraq war . Obama has said that if he 's elected , he would commit more troops to Afghanistan and would order the military to end the war in Iraq , which he has called a `` dangerous distraction '' from the Afghan battle . Obama spent Saturday and Sunday in Afghanistan , where he met with U.S. troops at three bases and with Afghan President Hamid Karzai -- a leader the Democratic senator has criticized for doing too little to rebuild the war-torn nation . Watch Obama meet Karzai , U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan » . The fight in Afghanistan recently has become a more pressing issue on the political radar . More coalition forces have died in Afghanistan than in Iraq in May , June and so far in July . Last week , in a major address laying out his foreign policy position , Obama said , `` As should have been apparent to President Bush and Sen. McCain , the central front in the war on terror is not Iraq , and it never was . '' He said part of his strategy would be `` taking the fight to al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan . '' CNN 's Jomana Karadsheh , Frederik Pleitgen and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report .
NEW : This means the product will ship as received by the manufacturer, sealed, with all advertised components, and with the manufacturer warranty. Sens . Jack Reed and Chuck Hagel accompany Obama on trip . Obama has talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday . Obama says part of his strategy is `` taking the fight to al Qaeda in Afghanistan ''