Obama says some progress seen on Afghan corruption

President Barack Obama said on Friday he has seen some progress in fighting corruption in Afghanistan but there was still much to be done.

"We're a long way from where we need to be on that," Obama told a news conference at the White House that ranged from the U.S. economy to foreign policy.

Obama cited some successes by Afghan President Hamid Karzai's government in battling corruption, which is seen as a major factor undercutting the U.S.-led war against Taliban militants.

"And we're going to keep on putting pressure on them on that front. Is it going to happen overnight? Probably not," Obama said.

He said the U.S. military and other agencies operating in Afghanistan needed to ensure their own activities were not abetting corruption.

"We're reviewing all that constantly and there may be occasions where that happens," Obama said.

"Let's make sure that our efforts there are not seen as somehow giving a wink and a nod to corruption. If we are saying publicly that that's important, then our actions have to match up across the board."