Beirut  - US Senator John Kerry arrived in Beirut Wednesday for talks with Lebanese leaders as part of a Mideast tour.

Kerry held talks with Prime Minister Fouad Seniora, President Michel Suleiman and parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri.

According to a government official the talks focused on Lebanon's upcoming parliamentary elections in June, as well as bilateral relations.

Kerry, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and was himself a Democrat presidential candidate in 2004, is on a Middle East tour, the first major US delegation to the region since US President Barak Obama took office in January.

Kerry's itinerary already took him to Jordan where he met with King Abdullah II. He is scheduled to later visit Jerusalem, the Palestinian territories, Egypt and Syria. dpa