WASHINGTON (AP) – One week after reversing his pledge to pull American troops out of Afghanistan before he leaves office, President Barack Obama is turning to two political dimensions of the war.
One is the Taliban’s use of Pakistani territory as sanctuary. The other is the set of obstacles to a negotiated Afghan peace deal.
Obama is welcoming Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to the White House on Thursday for talks that also are expected to touch on the future of U.S. financial assistance to Islamabad and prospects for Pakistani acceptance of limits on the scope of its nuclear weapons arsenal.
Major breakthroughs are seen as unlikely. But the visit highlights the complexities of a 14-year-old Afghan war that Obama inherited in 2009.
Sharif met Wednesday with Secretary of State John Kerry.