Obama pays unannounced visit to Afghanistan

KABUL - US President Barack Obama arrived in Afghan capital Kabul late on Tuesday for an unannounced visit to meet with his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai, reported local TV channels quoting Afghan officials.

During his trip which coincides with the first anniversary of the killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the US president is expected to sign a strategic partnership agreement with Afghanistan.

The Obama visit came a week after the Afghan and US governments finalized the draft of the US-Afghan strategic pact.

The agreement, which would pave the way for a long-term US military presence in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of the Nato-led coalition force from the war-torn country by 2014, has been welcomed by local analysts as a security stabilizing factor in Afghanistan.

Before drafting the pact, the Afghan government had previously signed two key deals with the United States which obliges US military to hand over the charge of the Bagram detention center to Afghan administration and allows Afghan security forces to lead special operations including the controversial night raids.