Afghanistan ? Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband arrived in Afghanistan on an unannounced visit Thursday, carrying a joint message of support and prodding to Afghan officials as the U.S. continued a drive to recruit more NATO troops.

Rice and Miliband flew together to the Afghan capital from London. They were seeing Afghan President Hamid Karzai and other officials amid a welter of outside assessments that progress in the six-year war is stalling.

The two made clear they expect cooperation from the Karzai government, widely seen as weak.

“The Afghan government has responsibilities, too,” Rice told reporters. “This is a two-way street, and I think everybody has to step back and concern ourselves with the Taliban.”

In London on Wednesday, Rice said the fight in Afghanistan won’t be won quickly and Defense Secretary Robert Gates scolded NATO countries who haven’t committed combat troops “willing to fight and die” to defeat a resurgent Taliban.