<p>Clinton landed in Islamabad where she will underscore the need for Afghan-Pakistani cooperation in winning the war but also announce plans to beef up US development assistance to Pakistan, which is rife with anti-American sentiment.<br /><br />After a day of talks in Pakistan, she will attend an international conference on Afghanistan in Kabul.<br /><br />Her visit to the region comes as American lawmakers and voters are increasingly questioning the course of the drawn-out war with rising death tolls among the US and international troops and growing questions about corruption.<br /><br />Last month was the deadliest of the war for international forces: 103 coalition troops were killed, despite the infusion of tens of thousands of new US troops.<br /><br />So far in July, 54 international troops have died, 39 of them American. An American service member was killed by a blast in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, and an American died in a blast in the south on Friday.<br /><br />On the first leg of her trip, Clinton is seeking to convince the Pakistanis and their leaders that the US is committed to the country’s long-term development needs and not just short-term security gains. This, officials say, will lead to greater Pakistani cooperation on key US policy goals.<br /><br />Still, they concede mistrust of the US runs deep, particularly over unmanned drone strikes which are aimed at militants but have also killed or maimed many civilians, including women and children.<br /><br />Vali Nasr, a deputy to US envoy Richard Holbrooke, told reporters travelling with Clinton that overcoming the suspicion remains a work in progress. “We are beginning to see movement but this is not going to happen overnight,” he said.<br /></p>
<p>Clinton landed in Islamabad where she will underscore the need for Afghan-Pakistani cooperation in winning the war but also announce plans to beef up US development assistance to Pakistan, which is rife with anti-American sentiment.<br /><br />After a day of talks in Pakistan, she will attend an international conference on Afghanistan in Kabul.<br /><br />Her visit to the region comes as American lawmakers and voters are increasingly questioning the course of the drawn-out war with rising death tolls among the US and international troops and growing questions about corruption.<br /><br />Last month was the deadliest of the war for international forces: 103 coalition troops were killed, despite the infusion of tens of thousands of new US troops.<br /><br />So far in July, 54 international troops have died, 39 of them American. An American service member was killed by a blast in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, and an American died in a blast in the south on Friday.<br /><br />On the first leg of her trip, Clinton is seeking to convince the Pakistanis and their leaders that the US is committed to the country’s long-term development needs and not just short-term security gains. This, officials say, will lead to greater Pakistani cooperation on key US policy goals.<br /><br />Still, they concede mistrust of the US runs deep, particularly over unmanned drone strikes which are aimed at militants but have also killed or maimed many civilians, including women and children.<br /><br />Vali Nasr, a deputy to US envoy Richard Holbrooke, told reporters travelling with Clinton that overcoming the suspicion remains a work in progress. “We are beginning to see movement but this is not going to happen overnight,” he said.<br /></p>
