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Neither of the two leaders whom President Obama met in Washington yesterday inspires confidence. Neither President Asif Ali Zardari nor President Hamid Karzai is fully in control of their armed forces, let alone their countries, and both men have been tainted by allegations of corruption. It would be easy for sceptics to argue that the aid packages to Afghanistan and Pakistan currently before the US Congress should be hobbled by unrealistic benchmarks. That, however, would be a mistake.

There are two aspects to Pakistan's problems - the Taliban's strength in the tribal areas and the state's weakness. If it is true to say that government in Islamabad has been undermined by a succession of military dictators, Mr Obama should do everything he can to support the development of a...