New Afghan president thanks US troops, taxpayers in break from predecessor

March 23, 2015: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani speaks at the Pentagon.(AP)

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, in an apparent effort to mend fences with the U.S. after years of tension under the Karzai government, thanked U.S. troops and taxpayers for their sacrifice and support during a Pentagon ceremony on Monday.

"What I want to state on behalf of the Afghan people is that each one of you also has left a memory in the heart of every Afghan that you've touched and encountered," Ghani said in a message to American troops, honoring the more than 2,000 soldiers who "paid the ultimate sacrifice."

Ghani also offered assurances that his country would not be a burden on the international community as it continues to struggle against the Taliban and its own internal divisions. Defense Secretary Ash Carter welcomed Ghani and Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah at a ceremony in the Pentagon's center courtyard.

Ghani thanked President Obama and top administration officials, but also American taxpayers who "make your hard-earned dollars available for Afghanistan."

His message was welcomed. "Karzai never did this. It's nice to be thanked," one Marine officer told Fox News.

The Afghan president's tone was markedly different from that set by his predecessor, Hamid Karzai, who had a falling out with the U.S. government and left office amid an atmosphere of mutual distrust.

Karzai did thank U.S. taxpayers during a speech in 2012, but by the time he left office his message had changed. In farewell remarks last year, Karzai accused the U.S. of not wanting peace, and thanked a slew of countries for their efforts in Afghanistan -- without thanking the U.S.

At the time, the American ambassador to Afghanistan James Cunningham called the comments "ungracious and ungrateful."

The Pentagon was a poignant setting for the start of Ghani's Washington visit. On Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked an American Airlines jetliner and flew it into the Pentagon, killing all aboard and 125 people in the building. The U.S. responded to the attacks on Washington and New York by invading Afghanistan a month later.

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New Afghan president thanks US troops, taxpayers in break from predecessor