The new Afghan government structure will face a major test as the country’s security and economic outlook worsens
Kabul : Afghanistan’s two rival presidential candidates signed a power-sharing deal on Sunday, ending a prolonged stand-off over disputed election results at a pivotal moment in the war-weary nation’s history, reports AFP.
The final vote count is also scheduled for release, after being delayed for last-minute talks to break a deadlock that plunged Afghanistan into crisis as US-led troops end their 13-year war against the Taliban. Ashraf Ghani – who won June’s run-off presidential vote, according to preliminary results – will become president, with Abdullah Abdullah nominating the person to fill a new post of “chief executive officer” (CEO), which will be similar to prime minister.
Both Ghani and Abdullah claimed to have won the fraud-tainted election. The United Nations has pushed hard for a “national unity government” to avoid a return to the ethnic divisions of the 1990s civil war. The two candidates signed the agreement at a ceremony inside the presidential palace, before they embraced each other and outgoing President Hamid Karzai began a speech. Under the constitution, the president wields almost total control, and the new government structure will face a major test as the country’s security and economic outlook worsens.
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US hails Afghan power-sharing deal
The US hailed a power- sharing deal between rival Afghan presidential candidates as a “moment of extraordinary statesmanship” that ended a prolonged dispute threatening to plunge the war-torn nation into further political turmoil and complicate the NATO troops withdrawal, reports PTI.
“The inauguration of the new President, appointment of his Chief Executive, and the signing of the Bilateral Security Agreement and NATO SOFA will open a new chapter in our enduring partnership with Afghanistan,” said US Secretary of State John Kerry. He said: “The US remains determined to honour the Afghan people’s historic achievement by helping their transition succeed.”
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