The Netherlands is calling for close international monitoring of the second round of the Afghanistan presidential election. This was foreign minister Maxime Verhagen’s response to the announcement by the independent Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) that no one candidate had reached the threshold for outright victory.

The definitive result of the first round follows an investigation by the ECC. Mr Verhagen said it was regrettable that so many incidences of fraud had been identified in the first round. ‘It is good that the Commission has investigated this fraud so thoroughly. Its expertise will be called on again during the second round.’

The election will be organised by the Afghan authorities, with the support of international organisations such as the United Nations, the European Union and NATO. Mr Verhagen emphasised the importance of efficient organisation and security. ‘I hope that the Afghan people will be able to vote without hindrance, and that the turnout will be higher than in the first round.’

In the second round of voting the Afghan people will be able to choose between President Hamid Karzai and his main rival Abdullah Abdullah. ‘Next week in Brussels I will be calling on my European colleagues and the international community to give their full support to UN Representative for Afghanistan Kai Eide in supervising this election run-off and ensuring its success,’ Mr Verhagen concluded.



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