AP image
Kabul:
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said the election year in war-torn Afghanistan will be a "stern test for everyone" during a visit to Kabul ahead of a presidential vote in August.
Brown held talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who announced for the first time publicly that he would contest the ballot on August 20.
The British premier described the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan as a "crucible of terrorism" and outlined a new approach, due to be officially unveiled Wednesday, for both countries as "different but complementary".
He told a joint news conference with Karzai that he would also hold talks with President Asif Ali Zardari in Pakistan later on Monday.
"It is important to recognise that we wish to support the Pakistani authorities in dealing with that terrorist threat and we will be discussing later today how we can work together when I meet President Zardari in Pakistan," he said.
Britain is the second biggest contributor of foreign troops to Afghanistan after the US, deploying around 8,300 as part of a NATO-led force based mostly in the south, the heartland of a Taliban insurgency.
Brown held talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who announced for the first time publicly that he would contest the ballot on August 20.
The British premier described the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan as a "crucible of terrorism" and outlined a new approach, due to be officially unveiled Wednesday, for both countries as "different but complementary".
He told a joint news conference with Karzai that he would also hold talks with President Asif Ali Zardari in Pakistan later on Monday.
"It is important to recognise that we wish to support the Pakistani authorities in dealing with that terrorist threat and we will be discussing later today how we can work together when I meet President Zardari in Pakistan," he said.
Britain is the second biggest contributor of foreign troops to Afghanistan after the US, deploying around 8,300 as part of a NATO-led force based mostly in the south, the heartland of a Taliban insurgency.
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