AP: Obama lands in Afghanistan

Barack Obama has landed in Afghanistan, the first stop of an international tour that will take him to the Middle East and Europe, the Associated Press is reporting.

The AP reports:

"On his trip, Obama intends to meet with Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president. He recently chided Karzai and his government, saying it had "not gotten out of the bunker" and helped to organize the country or its political and security institutions.

"Also on his itinerary is a meeting with Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi leader. On the campaign trail, Obama has said one benefit of withdrawing U.S. troops is that it would pressure al-Maliki to shore up his government as well."

Obama's absence on the campaign trail Friday fueled speculation that he was headed abroad -- and not just from journalists. John McCain, Obama's Republican rival, said he believed Obama had begun his trip, though McCain erroneously predicted Iraq as the first stop.

"I believe that either today or tomorrow -- and I'm not privy to his schedule -- Sen. Obama will be landing in Iraq with some other senators," McCain said at a fund-raiser Friday, according to Reuters.

The presumptive Democratic nominee had promised to visit war-torn Iraq and Afghanistan before the November election. His campaign has kept the details of the trip private for security reasons, but it appears Germany will also be on the list of stops. On Friday a spokesperson for Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel said Obama was expected to visit the country's leader in Berlin Thursday.

Read more about Obama's trip from the AP.