Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton launched fence-mending talks with Afghan government leaders Tuesday by assuring President Hamid Karzai that the U.S. will help rebuild and defend Afghanistan long after the last U.S. combat troops have left.
"We will not abandon the Afghan people. Our civilian commitment will remain long into the future," Clinton said, with Karzai at her side in the ornate Benjamin Franklin room at the State Department.
The Afghan president is in Washington for four days of consultations meant to repair frayed relations between the two countries. The Obama administration in the past criticized Karzai for tolerating corruption and drug trafficking in his government, while Karzai has accused Washington of failing to give him the support he needs to govern.
In opening remarks, Clinton and Karzai both stressed the positive but acknowledged that sharp differences have complicated efforts to stabilize Afghanistan.
"The ability to disagree on issues of importance to our respective countries and peoples is not an obstacle to achieving our shared objectives," Clinton said, before representatives of both governments retired behind closed doors for a day of consultations. "Rather, it reflects a level of trust that is essential to any meaningful dialogue and enduring strategic partnership."
Civilian casualties
Dressed in his customary Afghan attire, including a bright green and blue robe, Karzai thanked the U.S. for its contributions since routing the Taliban regime in late 2001, but he also cautioned that U.S.-led NATO forces must do more to avoid causing civilian casualties.
He said Gen. Stanley McChrystal, U.S. commander of the international force fighting the Taliban-led insurgency, is the first foreign commander to apologize to him each time a military operation costs civilian lives.
Karzai also said it was natural for Kabul and Washington to see the situation differently, even while working together toward the same goals.
"As two mature nations and two mature governments — by now the Afghan government is mature, too — we will be having disagreements from time to time," Karzai said.
Karzai also told Clinton that he is asking the U.S. to support a development strategy to assure Afghanistan's long-term economic viability, "so Afghanistan can in a few years' time not be any more a burden on your shoulders, so that Afghanistan can stand on its own feet, so Afghanistan can defend its country, so that Afghanistan can feed its people with its own income, so we can pay for our lives from our own pockets."
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Swank reception
Both countries' delegations were seated at a U-shaped table covered in white cloth, with the American and Afghan flags standing behind Clinton and Karzai. The same ceremonial venue was to be used for a swank reception for Karzai later Tuesday under glittering chandeliers.
Some 40 top U.S. and Afghan officials came to review Afghanistan's agriculture, education, security, finance, health and other services. In a bid to make the proceedings appear less adversarial, the delegations were mixed together.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates sat next to his Afghan counterpart, Gen. Abdul Rahim Wardak, rather than across from him. Also present for the Obama administration were CIA Director Leon Panetta; McChrystal, Joint Chiefs chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, and Karl Eikenberry, the U.S. ambassador to Kabul.
Karzai is scheduled to meet with President Barack Obama at the White House on Wednesday and wind up his visit on Thursday.
The U.S. hopes the visit will bolster ties with Karzai, a leader the administration previously tried to hold at arm's length.
The White House now seems to realize it will have to deal with Karzai, as it seeks to weaken the Taliban and gradually withdraw U.S.-led forces now holding the insurgents at bay.