Lahore, Jan 15 (IANS) Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and his counterpart in Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, have sought US Senator Hillary Clinton's support to help build durable peace and stability in South Asia.
The former first lady, who was leading a bipartisan US congressional delegation, was in Afghanistan and Pakistan over the weekend and met both the leaders.
Talks in Kabul focused on putting more US troops into Afghanistan, rising tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, reconstruction and women's rights, a top Afghan official said.
Musharraf met her at the Army House in Lahore immediately on her arrival. He stressed that his country was sincere about promoting a dialogue with India and better border management with Afghanistan.
Musharraf apprised her of the dialogue with New Delhi, including on the Kashmir issue, a day after he met visiting External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
He urged for better Pakistani access to the American market, Daily Times Monday quoted a senior Pakistani official as saying.
According to him, Musharraf told Clinton that Pakistan was in favour of a "stable, strong and prosperous Afghanistan" and that Islamabad was extending full support to the world community in the fight against terrorism.
Musharraf informed Clinton about the steps his government had taken to curb militancy and secure the Pakistani border with Afghanistan to check militant activities, the official said. Clinton praised Pakistan's role in combating terrorism.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have an ongoing tiff over illegal movement of rebels and arms. Islamabad's insistence on fencing and mining of parts of the 2,500 km porous and volatile border is also cause of some tension.