Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs

Assistant Secretary Richard A. Boucher heads the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs,which deals with U.S. foreign policy and U.S. relations with the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
President Bush Welcomes President Karzai of Afghanistan to the White House President Bush (Sept. 26): "We discussed how the government is building institutions necessary for Afghans to have a secure future. We talked about how America and our international partners can continue to help. ... Our allies are working on initiatives to help the Afghan people in building a free Afghanistan." full text
President Bush and President Musharraf of Pakistan Participate in Press Availability President Bush (Sept. 22): "This President is a strong defender of freedom and the people of Pakistan, and I appreciate your leadership. ... He understands that we are in a struggle against extremists who will use terror as a weapon. ... I admire your courage. And I thank you very much for working on common strategies to protect our respective peoples." full text
Third Indo-U.S. Economic Summit Ambassador Mulford (Sept. 13): "The United States and India are building the foundations of an historic partnership.  President Bush's India policy is premised on the belief that no other relationship will be more important in shaping the world of the 21st Century.  It is a relationship based on shared interests and shared values and touches a wide variety of areas... Our two countries have come a long way together in the past two years - and there is so much more to come.  This progress is due to the vision of our two leaders but also to the vision and the energy of people like you." full text
U.S. Support for Afghanistan's Counternarcotics Campaign The U.S. and the international community are helping the Government of Afghanistan in its efforts to counter cultivation, production, and trafficking of opium. The narcotics industry accounts for over one-third of Afghanistan's Gross Domestic Product and poses a threat to that country's stability and emerging democracy. Estimates of increased opium cultivation in 2006 highlight the challenge confronting Afghanistan and its international partners. fact sheet
Remnants of War Cleared from Afghanistan's “Devils Garden” The last of the thousands of deadly landmines, unexploded and abandoned ordnance, and booby traps that infested former battlefields around Bagram, Afghanistan, have been successfully cleared, largely through the support of the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs. The actual clearance of what was dubbed "The Devils Garden" because it reputedly contained the most dangerous minefields in the world, was conducted by The HALO Trust, a non-governmental organization and Department of State grantee that specializes in the removal of explosive war debris, beginning in December 2001. Media Note