Zardari, Clinton arrive in Kabul for Karzai inauguration (Roundup)

Nov 18, 2009, 15:32 GMT

Kabul - Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived in Kabul on Wednesday, a day ahead of the inauguration of President Hamid Karzai for a second term, officials said.

Karzai was declared winner of Afghanistan's fraud-marred election after his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah dropped out of a run-off scheduled for November 7.

Clinton was in Afghanistan to take part in the ceremony at the heavily fortified presidential palace on Thursday, where Karzai will be sworn in for the second five-year term, US embassy said in a statement.

'Clinton arrived in Afghanistan today for a brief visit,' the statement said, adding, 'She will meet with President Karzai this evening and attend inaugural events tomorrow.'

This is the first time for Clinton to come to Afghanistan since taking office as secretary of state.

President Zardari also arrived in Kabul Wednesday evening, where he called on Karzai in his palace in downtown Kabul, Karzai's office said in a statement.

Security was stepped up drastically ahead of the event for fears of attacks by Taliban militants. Additional heavily armed security forces were seen patrolling on city boulevards on Wednesday, while new checkpoints were erected in various parts of the city to inspect vehicles.

Hundreds of foreign dignitaries, including heads of states and foreign ministers as well as Afghan officials are expected to attend the event.

Karzai, who has become an increasingly unpopular leader because of endemic corruption marring his government in the past five years, is under mounting pressure by Western leaders to reform his cabinet and crack down on widespread graft.

Should he fail, the leaders warned, Karzai will face the loss of international support for his government.

During her week-long Asian tour, Clinton called repeatedly on re- elected Karzai from different Asian capitals to take firm steps to stamp out corruption in his new administration or risk the loss of US civilian aid to his government.

In a sign to show that he is willing to bow to international pressure, Karzai's government unveiled an anti-corruption unit and major crime fighting force on Monday. The president has also repeatedly said in recent weeks that no corrupt official would have a place in his future administration.

Clinton's visit also comes at the time when US President Barack Obama is in the final stages of consulting with his security advisers on whether to send tens of thousands of additional troops to the strife-torn country. Around 68,000 US troops are already stationed in Afghanistan.

Public support for the presence of over 100,000 US-led NATO troops in Afghanistan is waning in Western countries. More than 470 foreign soldiers have so far been killed this year, marking the deadliest period for international troops since their deployment in late 2001.

The alliance military announced on Wednesday that a US soldier was killed in a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday, in the latest series of homemade bomb attacks that have been increasingly carried out by the Taliban militants in the recent years.

The latest death brought to 290 the number of US soldiers killed in Afghanistan so far this year, according to Icasualties.org, an independent website that tracks military casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Afghan officials also said Wednesday that over three dozen Taliban militants were killed in several clashes in southern and eastern regions.

Afghan and international forces killed 23 Taliban fighters in an operation in south-eastern province of Paktika on Tuesday, while 16 other militants were killed in separate clashes in several provinces mainly in country's turbulent southern region.