WASHINGTON - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Afghan National Security Advisor Dr. Rangin Dadfar Spanta discuss a wide range of bilateral and regional issues on Friday.
"The secretary and Afghan national security advisor discussed the full range of bilateral and regional issues in their meeting today," a senior State Department official said.

"In particular, they discussed the road from the UNGA later this month to the November conference on regional cooperation in Istanbul to the December conference on Afghanistan in Bonn," the official said.

Progress in the discussions on the US-Afghanistan strategic partnership document, the New Silk Road vision and the Kabul Bank situation also figured at the meeting, said the official, requesting anonymity.

Earlier in the day, Clinton welcomed Spanta at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department. "It is indeed a great pleasure for me to welcome back to the State Department National Security Advisor Spanta," Clinton said.

"I have had the great honor of working with him on behalf of our respective governments when he was a foreign minister, and I'm delighted that our collaboration on behalf of peace and security and prosperity and opportunity for the people of Afghanistan continues," she said.

Spanta is leading a high-powered delegation for crucial talks with top US officials on the strategic partnership. The new strategic partnership is intended to provide a transparent political framework for long-term cooperation between the US and Afghanistan.

"It will reaffirm our shared commitment to a stable, independent Afghanistan that is not a safe-haven for al-Qaida, as well as US respect for Afghanistan's sovereignty," said the State Department spokesperson, Victoria Nuland.