US VP Cheney expects new Pakistan govt to be good allies

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KABUL, Mar 20 (AFP): US Vice President Dick Cheney said Thursday he expected the new Pakistan government to be "good and effective" US allies, as he made a surprise visit to neighbouring Afghanistan.
"I expect they'll be good and effective friends and allies of the United States, just as the previous government has been," Cheney told a news conference.
"I have no reason to doubt their commitment to dealing with the problems that emerge," the vice president said, referring specifically to the troubled tribal area along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
He said the new government, which has already vowed to take on Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, a close ally in the US-led "war on terror", had "as big a stake as anyone else" in fighting militancy.
Musharraf faces a fight for his political survival after his backers were trounced at the polls last month, with voters showing their anger over growing Islamic militancy and a host of economic problems.