US looks to reset relations with Karzai (News Feature)

By Mike McCarthy May 9, 2010, 1:23 GMT

Washington - Afghan President Hamid Karzai will be in Washington next week for several days of meetings designed to put aside recent tensions and refocus on fighting the insurgency and building up the country.

Karzai is scheduled to meet with Obama on Wednesday and hold a series of discussions with officials at the State Department and Pentagon throughout the week. He is also expected to meet with members of Congress, which has grown increasingly sceptical about Karzai's effectiveness in running the government.

Heading into the meeting, the White House was downplaying the tension and focussing on making progress in Afghanistan with Karzai's government.

'We have occasional ups and downs in this relationship as in any other relationship,' Ben Rhodes, Obama's national security adviser, told reporters on Friday.

US relations with Karzai had been on shaky ground since his re- election amid allegations of fraudulent balloting, and over Obama's concerns that rampant corruption in the Afghan government is undermining Karzai's standing with the Afghan people and fuelling the Taliban insurgency.

Ties took a turn for the worse when Obama made a surprise visit to Kabul in March and raised his concerns to Karzai, prompting days of rhetoric between the two sides.

Karzai accused the United Nations and Western governments of orchestrating the electoral fraud and held a visit in Kabul with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who used the opportunity to disparage the United States with Karzai standing beside him.

The White House called Karzai's accusations 'troubling,' while the State Department added 'preposterous.' Obama's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, had said that without a change in tone, the White House would keep the option open for cancelling next week's visit.

Things began to cool down after Obama sent Karzai a letter thanking him for the March 28 visit and re-extending the White House invitation, while Karzai put in a phone call to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Karzai's visit will be critical for Obama, who is in the middle of a massive troop surge in Afghanistan that will increase the American presence to more than 100,000 soldiers despite a public drop in support for the conflict in the United States.

Despite any differences, Karzai's re-election would keep him in office for a second, five-year term, and success for the US and NATO mission in Afghanistan is vital for Obama. He has begun to scale back the effort in Iraq to fulfill a campaign promise of prevailing in Afghanistan, which he regards as critical to US security.

Key on Karzai's agenda will be winning greater support from Obama's administration for his reconciliation talks with the Taliban. The United States has endorsed the talks as 'Afghan-led' with the caveat that members of the Taliban renounce violence and adhere to the law.

The White House has welcomed Karzai's announced steps to combat corruption, including requirements that officials disclose their financial assets and the establishment of a commission to carry out investigations.

'We'll be interested in hearing next week additional steps and how we can support those steps,' said Lieutenant General Douglas Lute, the top White House official for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Karzai will be bringing many of his ministers as part of a plan for the US and Afghan government to hold dialogue on a broad range of issues, from security to improving governance, Lute said.

Next week's meetings come ahead of a major international conference July 20 that for the first time will be hosted by the Afghan government in Kabul. The meeting is slated to follow up on a conference held in January in London to galvanize support for the Afghan government.