Clinton strikes upbeat tone in Nigeria

While offering few public comments on the security situation, visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Nigeria's potential was boundless. Clinton met in Abuja with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan as part of her tour of African nations. In a public statement following her meeting, the secretary said it was "absolutely vital" that bilateral efforts focus on "a full range of issues" ranging from economic matters to national security issues. Nevertheless, "the most important task," she said, was ensuring that there are better opportunities for Nigerians in the "north, south, east (and) west." She made little public mention of conflict tied to Islamic militant group Boko Haram. Human Rights Watch says more than 1,400 people in north and central Nigeria were killed by attacks attributed to the Islamic group since 2010. Clinton, however, said the U.S. government believes "the future for Nigeria is limitless." Boko Haram aims to establish an Islamic state in a country divided along Muslim and Christian lines. The country's president is a Christian.