Corruption among Afghan officials is rife and government must be reformed to help end 30 years of war, misery and oppression, President Hamid Karzai said on Tuesday in an unusually frank assessment of his country’s woes.

The United States on Tuesday cast doubt on Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili’s claims that Russia was involved in stirring up civil strife in the crisis-torn Caucasus nation.

Provincial officials said on Monday that Iraqi forces will take over security for Babel province south of Baghdad next month, but the U.S. military said it was not aware of any plans to transfer control.