US vows to stand by Afghanistan after combat ends

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday the United States will not abandon the Afghan people after the international combat mission in the country winds down next year.
"Let me be clear. As we look toward a responsible, orderly transition in the international combat mission in Afghanistan, we will not abandon the Afghan people," Clinton said as she sat next to Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
"Our civilian commitment will remain long into the future," she told high-level US and Afghan delegations seated at a U-shaped table in a chandeliered room of the State Department.Her remarks set the tone for an intense series of meetings involving ministers on both sides aimed at cementing a US-Afghan relationship that has shown many cracks in the past.Both Clinton and Karzai anticipated further disagreements between Washington and Kabul but said such incidents would only prove the maturity and steadfastness of the relationship.The pair touched on some sore points, with Clinton repeating calls on Kabul to root out corruption and Karzai urging international forces to better protect civilians.While improving security is "an essential first step" in Afghanistan, Clinton said, long-term stability depends on economic development and good governance, which includes fighting corruption."I appreciate President Karzai's steps to fight corruption," she said.
Karzai raised his government's demands for a better relationship.
"Afghanistan will seek respect for its judicial independence. Afghanistan will be seeking protection for its civilian population," said the Afghan leader, wearing his trademark cap and robes.
"I am very thankful to General (Stanley) McChrystal for the effort that he is putting in for the protection of Afghan civilians, with results," he said, as McChrystal, the leader of US forces in Afghanistan, looked on.Karzai promised that his government would assume its responsibilities in developing Afghanistan so that his war-torn country "is no longer a burden on your shoulders."
He also pledged that his country would remain a staunch ally long into the future. "We will not forget the contribution that you have made. Afghanistan is known around the world for being a country that remembers a friend," he said.
The Afghan leader met with McChrystal and the US ambassador to Kabul, Karl Eikenberry, during his first day of talks on Monday.
His four-day visit includes not only a full day of talks at the State Department on Tuesday, but a tete-a-tete meeting with Obama and a dinner hosted by Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday.
While their leaders meet, senior US and Afghan officials are also due to hold separate talks on cooperating over a range of issues, including agriculture and training of the Afghan army and police.