David Cameron has said Britain has paid "a heavy price" to stabilise Afghanistan during an unannounced visit to Kabul. The prime minister promised new Afghan president Ashraf Ghani that Britain will always be a "strong partner and good friend". At a joint press conference he said: "Together we have made Afghanistan safer, we have made Britain safer." Ghani said British troops had stood "shoulder to shoulder" with Afghanistan, and thanked those injured while serving in the country. Earlier this week he signed vital security agreements allowing foreign troops to remain in the country beyond the end of this year. Cameron is the first world leader to meet Afghanistan's new government. The BBC says Cameron is keen to "get in early" with the new Kabul leadership. It is Cameron's eighth visit to Afghanistan as prime minister and his last with British troops in a combat role, as all British forces are expected to leave Afghanistan by the end of the year. The prime minister arrived in Afghanistan overnight after making a surprise stop in Cyprus to thank British troops who have carried out airstrikes on Isis extremists in Iraq. He announced the deployment of two more British Tornado planes to join the fight against Isis while he was in Cyprus. They will join the six already based in the territory. The planes have carried out air strikes on four of their missions so far, hitting eight targets at five locations. · For further concise, balanced comment and analysis on the week's news, try The Week magazine. Source: The Week UK
