Round two
October 21, 2009
With winter on its way, UN officials are scrambling to help Afghanistan prepare for a second round of voting on November 7. The elections present "huge challenges" but the UN is committed to ensuring "transparent and credible" elections, Ban told reporters at UN headquarters in New York.
The West is hoping to avoid a repeat of the rampant fraud from the first round of Afghanistan's presidential election. Earlier this week, officials with a UN-backed watchdog said they believed that up to 25 percent of all ballots cast in the first round of voting were suspect. The Afghan elections commission confirmed on Tuesday that current President Hamid Karzai did not have the 50 percent of votes needed to win the election outright.
"Last night I contacted Mr. Karzai and I thanked him for his words and for his acceptance of the outcome of the election," Abdullah Abdullah, Karzai's main rival, told reporters on Wednesday.
Abdullah urged Afghan officials to organize a "free, fair and credible election."Stakes high for run-off
Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel encouraged Afghans to take part in the presidential run-off vote, saying that it would bring "a crucial contribution to the democratic electoral process in Afghanistan."
The EU's foreign policy coordinator, Javier Solana, urged Afghan officials "to do their utmost to ensure that the turnout of the second round provides for a credible and secure process. It should lead to a credible and legitimate result."
Yet Karzai was praised for agreeing to the run-off, even though early, problematic, results had shown him with a comfortable lead in voting.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown hailed Karzai's "statesman-like" behavior.
"President Karzai has today made clear that due constitutional process must be followed," Brown said.
France's Nicolas Sarkozy called Karzai "a statesman who can decide on what is essential, in the higher interests of his country and of the unity of the Afghan people.”
Italian security forces will stay
NATO troops have been fighting against a persistent Taliban insurgency in the country for nearly nine years. Germany currently has about 4,500 troops stationed in Afghanistan, which makes it the third-largest contingent of troops in the NATO-led military forces in Afghanistan, after the United States and Britain.
Italy sent 400 extra troops to Afghanistan to provide security for the August 20 elections. Those extra troops will stay on through the run-off vote in November, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said.
"The Afghan people have given the best possible response to those who doubted the wisdom of international action to support the country's democratization," Frattini said.
Italy has come under pressure to bring home its troops after a suicide bomber killed six Italian soldiers in Kabul last month.
th/AFP/AP
Editor: Chuck Penfold