PRESS STATEMENT ON AFGHANISTAN BY PRESIDENT OF SECURITY COUNCIL, 21 JUNE

Following is the press statement on Afghanistan delivered on Friday,

21 June, by Mikhail Wehbe (Syria), President of the Security Council:

Members of the Council welcome the successful conclusion of the Loya Jirga and inauguration of President Hamed Karzai as Head of the new Transitional Administration;

Members of the Council pay great tribute to the Afghan people and their leaders for such a large and peaceful gathering so soon after the Interim Administration took office.

They pay tribute also to the contribution of the United Nations, particularly to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Lakhdar Brahimi, and to the efforts of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in helping to ensure a secure environment in which the Loya Jirga could take place.

They look forward to a formal Council response very soon.

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