Brown, Karzai reaffirm unity at Afghan meeting

Kandahar, Afghanistan: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Afghan President Hamid Karzai met at an Afghan air base on Sunday, aiming to fix a relationship that has grown bitter as the Afghan war grows deadlier and more unpopular.

Brown, whose troops have this year faced Britain's deadliest fighting in a generation, made an unannounced visit to Kandahar air base, headquarters of Nato troops in southern Afghanistan, and said the next few months of the war would be critical.

In a show of unity, the leaders whose public complaints about each other have been symptomatic of Karzai's eroding standing in the West jointly surveyed a parade of Afghan and Nato troops at the base and insisted their ties remain warm.

Less popular

"I find him an extremely dignified person. I'm happy and honoured indeed to call him a friend," Karzai told journalists when asked about sharp remarks about Brown he made last week. "He has a relationship with me I can call very trustworthy."

Brown said the two had "the best of relations. We talk regularly by telephone".

As the war has grown less popular at home, Brown has been even more prominent than other Western leaders in voicing mounting criticism of the government of Karzai, who was re-elected in an August vote that was marred by widespread fraud.

The Afghan leader lashed back in an interview last week, saying comments from Brown were "very unfortunate and very artificial. It is extremely insulting".

Balance

Western leaders are trying to strike a balance between rebuking Karzai for what they see as weak leadership and tolerance of corruption, without further undermining his legitimacy and support for their war to protect his government. This year 100 British soldiers have been killed in the fiercest fighting of the eight-year-old war, fuelling opposition in Britain to the forces' involvement.

That public doubt puts pressure on Brown, who faces an uphill battle to win an election due by next June. Brown has had to defend himself against criticism that he poorly explained the reasons behind Britain's participation in the war and starved the military of cash it needed for helicopters and armoured vehicles.