Obama visits Afghanistan to tour war zone

Less than four months before the general election, Obama's first visit to Afghanistan, with a subsequent stop in Iraq, was rich with political implications, although the Illinois senator flew as part of an official congressional delegation.

Rival John McCain has criticized Obama for his lack of time in the region, and the Republican National Committee had a running ticker tallying the more than 900 days since his last visit to Iraq.

Spokesman Robert Gibbs said Obama arrived in Kabul early Saturday.

"I look forward to seeing what the situation on the ground is," Obama told a pair of reporters who accompanied him to his departure from Andrews Air Force Base on Thursday.

"I want to, obviously, talk to the commanders and get a sense both in Afghanistan and in Baghdad of, you know, what the most, their biggest concerns are, and I want to thank our troops for the heroic work that they've been doing," he said before his flight overseas.

Obama advocates ending the U.S. combat role in Iraq by withdrawing troops at the rate of one to two combat brigades a month. But he supports increasing the military commitment to Afghanistan, where the Taliban has been resurgent and Osama bin laden is believed to be hiding.

On his trip, Obama intends to meet with Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president. He recently chided Karzai and his government, saying it had "not gotten out of the bunker" and helped to organize the country or its political and security institutions.

Also on his itinerary is a meeting with Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi leader. On the campaign trail, Obama has said one benefit of withdrawing U.S. troops is that it would pressure al-Maliki to shore up his government as well.

Nonetheless, he said he did not plan to reiterate those messages in person.

"I'm more interested in listening than doing a lot of talking, and I think it's very important to recognize that I'm going over there as a U.S. senator," he said. "We have one president at a time."

In a speech this week, Obama said the war in Iraq was a distraction, unlike the fighting in Afghanistan.

"This is a war that we have to win," he said. "I will send at least two additional combat brigades to Afghanistan, and use this commitment to seek greater contributions — with fewer restrictions — from NATO allies.

"I will focus on training Afghan security forces and supporting an Afghan judiciary, with more resources and incentives for American officers who perform these missions."

By contrast, his opposition to the war in Iraq — and call for an end to the U.S. combat role — helped him overcome his rivals in the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Lately, his efforts to explain how he will use what he learns from U.S. commanders to refine his proposals have brought charges from Republicans and complaints from Democratic liberals that he seems to be shifting his Iraq policy toward the political center. But Obama maintains his basic goal of ending the U.S. combat role soon remains unchanged and that he's always said the U.S. withdrawal must be done carefully.

Obama also arranged to visit Jordan, Israel, Germany, France and England, traveling aboard a jet chartered by his presidential campaign, before his return to the United States. The weeklong trip marks his only foreign excursion as a presidential candidate; McCain has visited Canada, Colombia and Mexico, in part to highlight Obama's opposition to trade deals with those allies.

Obama began his trip with as much secrecy as a presumed presidential nominee can muster.

The senator took an unmarked, corporate Gulfstream-III jet, much smaller than his normal campaign plane, from Chicago to Washington. He was joined by his Secret Service detail, spokeswoman Linda Douglass and two reporters.

Obama deplaned at Reagan National Airport in Washington, took one question apiece from the reporters, and then his motorcade departed for a hasty ride to Andrews Air Force Base about 10 miles away in Maryland.

Upon his arrival, Obama was greeted by a group of Air Force personnel at the bottom of stairs leading to the military Boeing 737 transporting his congressional delegation. Obama's traveling companions, Sens. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Jack Reed, R.I., were not visible to the reporters, but Douglass confirmed they were already on board the aircraft.

Both senators, each a veteran, have been mentioned as potential Obama vice presidential running mates, but Reed has said he's not interested in the job.

Few citizens in impoverished Afghanistan were aware of Obama's unannounced visit, and few have been following the U.S. presidential race, being too busy eking out an existence amid soaring violence and with limited access to news media.

But some interviewed Saturday said they would welcome an Obama presidency if he could help their country end the fighting, corruption and poverty that have crippled it for so long.

"Obama is a good person," said Abdul Basir, 40, a former army officer. "During his campaign I heard he was saying that if I become president I will withdraw the U.S. troops from Iraq and bring them to Afghanistan and I will attack on the terror center on other side of border (in Pakistan). It is very important and I appreciated that."

The Afghans expressed a readiness to see the end of the Bush presidency. Obama's racial heritage also has drawn attention here.

"He's welcome to our war-torn city," said Habibullah Hamdard, a 42-year-old teacher. "If he has loved his children, he should love the Afghan children who are dying around the country every day. The white guy couldn't do anything, let's see what the black guy can do."