John Kerry begins key Pakistan visit

This is John Kerry's first trip to Pakistan as US secretary of state

The US Secretary of State, John Kerry, has arrived in Pakistan for talks with the newly-elected government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

His visit had not been publicly announced because of security concerns.

The talks will focus on the economy and counter-terrorism measures.

Kerry is also expected to try to ease tension over US drone strikes against suspected militants, correspondents say.

CIA strikes killed up to 3,460 people in Pakistan between 2004 and 2013.

The troubled border region of North Waziristan is considered an al-Qaeda and Taliban stronghold and US drones regularly target the area.

But Sharif, who won elections in May, has demanded an end to such attacks, saying they violate his country's sovereignty.

Earlier this year, Obama called the strikes part of a legitimate campaign against terrorism, but he also pledged more programme transparency and stricter targeting rules.

Violent extremism

The secretary of state is set to meet Sharif and outgoing President Ali Asif Zardari in the capital Islamabad on Thursday.

It is Kerry's first trip to Pakistan as secretary of state, although he has visited the country in previous roles.

The economy, energy and extremism represent pressing issues for Pakistan's new prime minister and are likely to dominate the agenda, the BBC's Kim Ghattas, in Islamabad, reports.

The Pakistani government is still formulating its counter-terrorism strategy in light of a recent spate of militant attacks.

Senior US officials travelling with Kerry said Pakistan was likely to continue military clampdowns on militants, but also engage them in talks.

Our correspondent says the US wants to stress to Sharif that violent extremism is a threat to both his own plans to strengthen the economy and a concern for the US, which has troops based in neighbouring Afghanistan.

The issue of drone strikes remains hugely controversial in Pakistan, where parts of the government and military have often been accused of criticising the use of drones in public, but co-operating in private.

Observers say Kerry hopes to put a fresh focus on America's relations with Pakistan.

The last visit by a US secretary of state was in 2011, after al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden was killed in a US raid in north-west Pakistan.

Ties between Washington and Islamabad were at breaking point then, our correspondent says.

But while the relationship remains difficult, it is considerably less tense now, partly because Pakistan's domestic politics have settled down, she adds.