* Both sides seek to show united front
* Pressure on governance and corruption
* Planning for peace "jirga" and Kabul meeting
By Sue Pleming
Karzai will get the red-carpet treatment during his four-day visit, including a Rose Garden news conference with President Barack Obama on Wednesday when the two are expected to exchange smiles and warm handshakes.
In private, however, the message from Obama is expected to be firm -- that Washington wants to start pulling out U.S. troops from Afghanistan from July 2011 and Karzai must do a better job on governance issues and tackling corruption.
"Where we think more needs to be done, we'll communicate that directly to the Afghans, and also aim to support positive movement on issues related to corruption and governance in ways that we can," said deputy national security advisor Ben Rhodes.
The White House concedes there have been "ups and downs" in the relationship, referring to recent testy exchanges with Karzai following anti-Western comments he made, including putting much of the blame for corruption on foreign donors.
In an editorial in The Washington Post on Sunday, Karzai also said there had been "our share of disagreements" but sought to set a positive tone for his visit.
"What has kept us together is an overriding strategic vision of an Afghanistan whose peace and stability can guarantee the safety of the Afghan and the American peoples," Karzai wrote.
Karzai said good governance and rooting out corruption were among his top priorities, promising to "do more" -- a demand lawmakers will press when he visits Capitol Hill.
Experts said it was important to show recent tensions were behind them as both sides needed each other.
"I am confident both presidents have it within them to take that deep breath and to use this visit to move forward as partners," said former U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan and Iraq Ryan Crocker.
AFGHAN CONCERNS
Karzai has his own concerns and is expected to raise the issue of civilian casualties as well as a growing worry among many Afghans that U.S. commitment to the country will wane quickly once it starts withdrawing troops.
Nearly all of Karzai's Cabinet will be in Washington for the four days of meetings -- emulating the "strategic dialogue" held in March with Pakistan that was aimed at showing deeper, long-term ties between the two countries.
Karzai's visit comes at an important juncture in the war, with 30,000 additional U.S. troops expected there by the end of August and an upcoming military offensive to take full control of Kandahar, the spiritual hub of the Taliban in the South.
More immediately, there will be a so-called grand council of Afghans, or peace "jirga," planned in Kabul from May 29 to discuss how to make peace with the insurgents and Obama is looking for more details on how that will pan out.
The United States has made clear that only those senior Taliban leaders who renounce violence and ties to al Qaeda should be brought in and would prefer for there to be more gains on the battlefield before then.
A draft peace proposal by the Afghan government indicates Taliban leaders may be offered exile overseas in third countries in an effort to persuade insurgents to end the war.
Another focus will be on planning for an international conference on Afghanistan due in Kabul in late July as well as September parliamentary elections.
In addition, Karzai will be looking for greater action against sanctuaries for insurgents in neighboring Pakistan which he said was "harming our cause."
Washington has been putting more pressure on Islamabad to tackle sanctuaries both for the Afghan and the Pakistani Taliban, the group suspected of being behind a foiled attack on Times Square this month. (Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
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