NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports on the news conference between Secretary of State John Kerry and Afghan President ?Hamid Karzai.
By Andrea Mitchell and Jamieson Lesko, NBC News
Jason Reed / AP
Secretary of State John Kerry, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan James Cunningham, left, meets with Afghan President Hamid Karzai at the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Monday.
KABUL -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has infuriated U.S. officials with anti-American rhetoric, on Monday denied suggesting that the U.S. was colluding with the Taliban to convince Afghans that foreign forces were needed in the country beyond 2014.?
In a joint news briefing with Secretary of State John Kerry, Karzai said the media misinterpreted comments he made during a visit by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on March 10.
Karzai said the point he was trying to make was that by continuing to bomb and kill innocent Afghans, the Taliban is giving a reason for the U.S. to stay.
It was the media, Karzai said, that misinterpreted that to mean collusion, a word he said he did not use.
?If they want the international forces to leave, the best thing to do is stop hurting Afghans,? Karzai said.
Kerry arrived in Afghanistan?s capital Monday on an unannounced visit that aims to repair fractured ties with President Hamid Karzai.
For his part, Kerry said the United States and Afghan leaders share the same goals ? bringing the Taliban into peace talks.
The meeting came on the same day the U.S. turned over the detention facility at the U.S.-run Bagram military base north of Kabul to Afghan control, which has been a priority for Karzai.?U.S. officials say they've been assured the most dangerous prisoners will not be released.
It is Kerry?s sixth visit to Afghanistan since President Barack Obama took office, but his first as secretary of state.
State Department officials told reporters traveling with Kerry that he is optimistic the U.S. and Afghanistan can overcome recent differences, including the awkward moment earlier this month when Karzai accused the U.S. and the Taliban of colluding to convince Afghans that foreign forces were needed beyond 2014.
The officials said Kerry was not in Kabul to lecture or chide Karzai, adding that he acknowledged the relationship was ?not always going to be easy.?
The secretary of state arrived in Kabul this morning just a day after another unannounced visit to Baghdad. Kerry plans to meet with Afghanistan's president Hamid Karzai to discuss political and security issues. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
Kerry is optimistic the two countries can move in from Karzai?s anti-U.S. rhetoric, which the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan warned was putting the lives of Western troops in danger.
Anja Niedringhaus / AP
An Afghan prisoner leaves with his belongings from the Parwan Detention Facility outside Kabul after the U.S. military gave control to Afghan authorities, Monday.
On Sunday, Kerry visited Iraq before leaving for dinner in the Jordanian capital, Amman, with Pakistan's powerful army chief of staff, Ashfaq Kayani.
The secretary of state is not visiting Pakistan during this trip as the country is in the midst of a political transition.
NBC News' Catherin Chomiak and Alastair Jamieson contributed to this report.
Related:
Kerry urges Iraq to stop arms flow to Syria on Baghdad visit
Full Afghanistan coverage from NBC News
This story was originally published on Mon Mar 25, 2013 8:03 AM EDT
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