Istanbul: World to chart Afghan roadmap today

Diplomats are campaigning this week for a stable Afghanistan after the planned withdrawal of international combat forces by the end of 2014, a goal imperilled by militant attacks, a weak Afghan government and the conflicting interests of regional players.

International delegates were converging on Istanbul on Tuesday before the conference on security and economic development in Afghanistan against a backdrop of high-profile assaults in Kabul in the last few months.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari met ahead of the regional conference on today amid tension over Afghan and US demands that Pakistan do more to curb militant activity and sanctuaries on its territory.

Karzai urged Pakistan to "move beyond words" and take concrete steps to curb militants which it said were a threat to both countries. They held their first talks since the assassination in September of Afghan peace negotiator Burhanuddin Rabbani.

Karzai urged "all countries in the region (to) cooperate with each other with honesty", in the face of threats, a statement from Karzai's office said. "If that happens, all countries in the region can overcome their problems."

Today's meeting on "Security and Cooperation in the Heart of Asia" will be attended by 14 regional countries: Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenisan, Uzbekistan and UAE. Germany, France and other Western countries with troops deployed in Afghanistan were sending envoys to show support.

Secretary of State Hillary in Afghanistan to discuss peace moves

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will discuss possible peace talks and Afghanistan's tricky ties with Pakistan when she meets Afghan President Hamid Karzai and other key leaders in Kabul on Thursday, US officials said.

Hillary’s arrival on Wednesday on an unannounced visit to Afghanistan follows several high profile attacks in the Afghan capital, including an assault on the US embassy in September and days later the assassination of Karzai's top peace envoy, former president Burhanuddin Rabbani.

"She wants to signal US support for a secure and stable Afghanistan," a senior US official told reporters travelling with Hillary.

"She wants to emphasise that the United States remains committed to Afghan reconciliation and will support President Karzai in his efforts, recognising the difficulties that process has undergone since the assassination of Rabbani."

The visit comes as Afghanistan, Pakistan and the United States all see strains in their relations, complicating the outlook as the Obama administration pushes ahead with plans to draw down troops and turn over security responsibility to Afghan forces by the end of 2014.

Efforts to reach a political solution to a conflict now over a decade old will be on Hillary's agenda, along with support for Afghans as they step up their own security work, the official said.

Hillary will meet Karzai and other Afghan officials, US officials said, and hold a round-table meeting with non-government leaders and civil society activists. She will also hold a joint news conference with the Afghan President.

US officials said Hillary would also discuss the future "strategic partnership" between Afghanistan and the United States after 2014, with an eye to eventually formalising the alliance.

"She'll want to point to that as a signal to Afghans, to the region, that the United States will remain committed to Afghanistan beyond 2014."

Hillary is expected to preview plans for conferences on the future of Afghanistan due to be held in Istanbul in November and Bonn in December which US officials hope will tighten international cooperation on political and economic strategies to stabilise the country.

She is also expected to discuss ties between Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan, accused by officials in both Afghanistan and the United States with working to undercut the US-led military campaign in order to protect its influence in the region.

Ties between Kabul and Islamabad have been particularly strained since the assassination of Rabbani, who was killed by a suicide bomber posing as a Taliban reconciliation envoy.

Many Afghans, including senior officials, have accused the Pakistan government of having links to the killing, and accused their neighbour of fomenting instability to further its own political interests. Pakistan denies this.

Karzai has been more circumspect, but hinted after the killing that he had lost hope in pursuing peace talks with the Taliban and suggested negotiations with Pakistan instead.

Top US officials have also accused Pakistan of supporting insurgent groups in Afghanistan after September's 20-hour attack on diplomatic targets in Kabul, including the US embassy.

But President Barack Obama and Hillary have both stressed that the US relationship with Pakistan is too important to abandon, although Hillary said last week if Islamabad did not help solve Afghanistan's difficulties it would "continue to be part of the problem”.

Tributes paid at Rabbani funeral

ignitaries have been paying tribute before the coffin of former Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was killed by a suicide bomber claiming to carry a message of peace from the Taliban.

President Hamid Karzai, Afghan lawmakers and foreign ambassadors were among those who gathered at the presidential palace in Kabul at the beginning of the funeral ceremony for Mr Rabbani, whose coffin was draped in a red, black and green national flag.

Earlier, the coffin was carried by uniformed service men with caps and white gloves. Mr Rabbani's son followed directly behind in the procession.

The ex-president headed the Afghan peace council, which was seeking to reconcile the nation's warring factions. He was killed Tuesday evening in Kabul by an assassin who visited his home under the guise of delivering a message from the insurgency.

"It is our responsibility to act against those who are enemies of peace," said Karzai, who hailed Mr Rabbani as a tireless advocate for reconciliation and "the martyr of the path of peace".

The president said Afghans should not despair over Mr Rabbani's death, but instead should escalate efforts to bring an end to years of fighting in Afghanistan.

"Today we are witnessing one of the biggest and saddest events of this important political time in the history of the world," said Salahuddin Rabbani, the former president's son. He urged the Afghan government to aggressively investigate the killing.

Mr Rabbani, 70, was the leader of Afghanistan's Northern Alliance, which helped overthrow Taliban rule during the US-led invasion in 2001. The peace council that he headed was set up by Mr Karzai to work toward a political solution to the conflict.

It has made little headway since it was formed a year ago, but it is backed by many in the international community as helping move toward a settlement.

The suicide attacker who killed Mr Rabbani had a bomb in his turban, and gained entry to the former president's home by convincing officials, including Mr Karzai's advisers, that he represented the Taliban leadership and wanted to discuss reconciliation.