Mbeki in Washington

President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa is in Washington at the start of his first official visit to the United States since he took office.

Mr Mbeki is due to hold talks with President Clinton today , which American officials say will cover regional conflicts in Africa, including the crisis over land occupations in South Africa's neighbour, Zimbabwe.

Discussions are also expected to cover Mr Mbeki's controversial stance on how to tackle the AIDS epidemic in his country.

Mr Mbeki has drawn sharp criticism from the international scientific community for inviting dissident American scientists who dispute the link between the HIV virus and AIDS to join a special commission investigating the epidemic in South Africa. South Africa has the fastest rate of new HIV infections in the world.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service