US President Barack Obama has backed Afghan efforts to "open the door" to Taliban militants¹ who renounce² violence and cut ties with al-Qaeda.

阿富汗对宣布放弃暴力并与基地组织切断联系的塔利班武装人员“敞开大门”，美国总统奥巴马对此表示支持。

He was speaking after talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington.

Mr Karzai is in the US for four days of meetings aimed at repairing rocky relations between Kabul and Washington.

But Mr Obama said "perceived（感观的） tensions" were "simply overstated". He added that the US-led troops had begun to "reverse the momentum³（动力，冲力） of the insurgency⁴（叛乱，暴动） ".

On Tuesday, Mr Karzai met US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who told him that the US would remain committed to Afghanistan long after troops left.

President Karzai also paid an emotional visit to US troops who were injured in his country, thanking them for their sacrifice.

Speaking at a joint⁵ news conference at the White House, Mr Obama said he supported Kabul's efforts to "open the door to Taliban, who cut their ties with al-Qaeda and renounced⁶（宣布放弃） violence".

He was apparently⁷ referring to recent efforts by the Karzai government to reach out to Taliban militants who agree to lay down their weapons.

Mr Karzai has said he plans to introduce a scheme to attract Taliban fighters back to normal life by offering money and jobs.

In Washington, President Obama also reiterated⁸（重申） Washington's pledge to turn Afghanistan into a "stable and prosperous" country.

In his turn, Mr Karzai admitted that Afghanistan still had its "shortcomings", but he promised to work for a better government with help from the US.

In the course of his visit, the Afghan leader is also expected to meet Senate and House leaders.

Stark⁹ contrast

Mr Karzai's trip comes at a crucial time in his country.

Nato is preparing for an assault against militants in the southern province of Kandahar, and Afghan officials are preparing for a meeting of tribal¹⁰ leaders, who will discuss how to promote peace.

The US hopes to start pulling out troops from July 2011 but Afghanistan has seen a marked increase in violence over the past year.

The red-carpet treatment for Mr Karzai in Washington is a stark contrast to some of the acrimony（辛辣，严厉） in US-Afghan ties over the past few months, correspondents say.

Relations reached a low point last year after Mr Karzai won an election widely condemned¹¹ for fraud.

In March, the Obama administration publicly accused President Karzai of tolerating（忍受，默许） corruption¹² and drug trafficking.

The Afghan leader accused the West of undermining（暗中破坏） him, and at one point even reportedly joked that he might join the Taliban.

What is changing now is the way US officials broach¹³（提出，钻孔） these difficult issues, says the BBC's Lyse Doucet in Washington.

US officials are not going to lecture President Karzai in public, says our correspondent.

She says they are going to try to deal with him - as they say - in a more respectful manner, because the other approach did not work.