KABUL, (Reuters) – Barack Obama made his first trip to Afghanistan as U.S. president yesterday, delivering a rousing speech to troops and telling Afghan President Hamid Karzai that progress on fighting corruption should match military gains.
Air Force One landed in darkness at Bagram airfield north of the Afghan capital, and Obama was whisked by helicopter to Karzai’s palace in Kabul, where he was greeted by the Afghan president and a band playing the U.S. national anthem.
His meeting with Karzai was subdued, reflecting the frosty relations between his administration and the wartime ally upon whom Obama’s signature foreign policy rests. Neither man answered questions from the press.
“I want to send a strong message that the partnership between the United States and Afghanistan is going to continue. We have already seen progress with respect to the military campaign against extremism in the region,” Obama told Karzai in front of a group of reporters ushered into a room inside the palace.
“We also want to continue to make progress on … good governance, rule of law, anti-corruption efforts — all these things end up resulting in an Afghanistan that is more prosperous, more secure, independent,” he added.
Karzai said he hoped “the partnership will continue … towards a stable, strong, peaceful Afghanistan that can sustain itself, that can move forward into the future.”
U.S. officials said corruption and governance were among the issues that the president discussed directly with Karzai during talks that lasted barely half an hour. A perception in the United States that Karzai is tolerant of corruption has sapped support for the war back home.
In December, Obama ordered the deployment of an extra 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan and set a mid-2011 target to begin withdrawal. About a third have so far arrived, participating in a major offensive in the south of the country last month.
Obama returned to Bagram, appearing in a bomber jacket, and delivering a speech to troops just before midnight, telling them he was confident they would have success in their mission.
“I want you to know … whether you are working here on Bagram or patrolling a village down in Helmand … your services are absolutely necessary, absolutely essential to America’s safety and security,” he told the troops.
He met the commander of U.S. and NATO troops, Army General Stanley McChrystal, and the U.S. ambassador, Karl Eikenberry, before taking off on Air Force One without seeing daylight.
The Obama administration has had an uneasy relationship with Karzai throughout Obama’s 14 months in office, reaching a low point during a three-month Afghan election dispute last year.
