WASHINGTON, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Vice-President Joseph Biden called Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki over Baghdad blasts on Tuesday, the White House said.

    Biden conveyed condolences to the Iraqi leaders, saying the United States strongly condemns the attacks, which killed 127 people. He said the perpetrators of the attacks would not succeed, and the United States will stand with the Iraqi government to build national unity.

    Five massive car bombs ripped through Baghdad earlier Tuesday, killing a total of 127 people and wounding 448, in the third deadliest series of attacks since August.

    The bombings occurred early morning, with four of them rigged to go off around town at about the same time. The bombings took place several hours before the Iraqi presidency chose March 6 as the new date for the country's crucial parliamentary elections.

    The election was originally slated for January 16, but months of debate among Iraqi politicians to pass amendments needed to reform the elections process has delayed the polls.

    The elections are important to the United States too. The administration has made withdrawal of its combat troops from Iraq conditional to a period of calm following successful elections, and it exerted significant pressure on Iraqi politicians to reach a compromise.

    Both U.S. President Barack Obama and Biden had personally called Iraqi politicians to persuade them, according to reports.

    Despite a decline in violence in the last two years, recent attacks have raised concerns about security during the country's national elections next year. Before the bombings, suicide truck bombs struck ministries of foreign affairs and finance on August 19, and insurgents hit the buildings of Baghdad Provincial Council and the Justice Ministry on Oct. 25.