Afghanistan’s rival presidential
candidates have ended six months of political deadlock by signing a
power-sharing agreement that paves the way for the installation of a new
president, The Guardian reports.
In a televised ceremony at the
presidential palace on Sunday, Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani signed
the deal to create a national unity government. The short ceremony was
hosted by the outgoing president, Hamid Karzai, and attended by cabinet
members, and other high-level government officials.
The details of the deal, though leaked to
the press, has not yet officially been made public. Conspicuously
absent from the signing were the US ambassador, James Cunningham, and
head of the UN in Afghanistan, Jan Kubis; both had significant mediating
roles during the long negotiations.
According to the four-page deal, the
winner of the election, Ghani, will be president. The runner-up,
Abdullah – or someone he appoints – will become prime minister, or the
chief executive officer. The president will run the cabinet and be in
charge of strategic functions, while the chief executive will be in
charge of daily duties. He will also chair the new council of ministers.
Neither candidate appeared elated or
particularly content as Karzai gave a short speech in which he
congratulated the two candidates and expressed his readiness to help in
“finishing the work that the current administration had started”.
