British Foreign Secretary William Hague held his first meeting with his US counterpart, Hillary Rodham Clinton, on Friday and expressed his firm commitment to the mission in Afghanistan, reported the dpa. The new British government under Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron has identified the conflict as its "top priority" internationally, Hague said, despite sagging popular support in Britain. "We talked, indeed, about our joint effort in Afghanistan, which the prime minister has made our top priority in foreign affairs," Hague said, adding: "We will give the strategy, the NATO strategy, and the agreements made at the London conference the time and support to succeed." The Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats announced the forming of coalition on Tuesday following the May 6 elections that ended 13 years of Labour rule. Hague's trip to Washington was intended to highlight the critical alliance between the two countries. "The United States is without doubt the most important ally of the United Kingdom," Hague said. "Fundamentally, it is a relationship rooted in the strong alignment of our national interests." Clinton and Hague also discussed the Middle East peace process and the Pakistani government fight against Islamic extremists, as well as Iran's nuclear programme. He backed additional sanctions on Tehran for its refusal to comply with international demands regarding its nuclear activities. Clinton said she had "absolutely no concerns whatsoever" that a rare coalition government in the House of Commons could be destabilizing to bilateral relations.
