Karzai sworn in for second term in Kabul
Karzai sworn in for second term
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By Matt Hallam. |  |
Thursday, 19, Nov 2009 11:05
By Richard James.
Hamid Karzai has been sworn in for a second term as Afghan president following farcical elections in the summer.
At his inauguration in Kabul on Thursday, the 51-year-old said that during his time in office, the next five years, he hoped Afghan security forces would take over policing the country and the role played by foreign troops would diminish.
The Afghan capital was effectively locked down during the ceremony with a national holiday called, people urged to stay indoors and the international airport closed.
US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, Pakistan's president Asif Ali Zardari and UK foreign secretary David Miliband were among the dignitaries present at the swearing in.
Mr Karzai has come under severe pressure from world leaders to tackle the widespread corruption within his government since the summer.
The August elections in the country were severely undermined by reports of vote-rigging and fraud, with Mr Karzai only announced the victor after his main rival Abdullah Abdullah pulled out of a second round of voting.
During his inauguration speech, the Afghan president said he would make measures to ensure his ministers were "competent and just" in the future.
He admitted corruption was a "dangerous problem", adding: "We will soon organise a conference in Kabul to organise new and effective ways to combat this problem.
"We have to learn from our mistakes and shortcomings of the last eight years."
Gordon Brown and Mr Miliband earlier this week both called for a "clear political strategy" to the ongoing military offensive against the Taliban insurgency.
On Thursday, Mr Karzai welcomed the role the international forces were playing in strengthening the Afghan security forces.
He also pledged to create thousands of jobs as part of attempts to reconstruction his battered nation while calling on his political rivals to work with him to create a government of unity "for the prosperity of Afghanistan".
Downing Street said it welcomed the news of President Karzai's inauguration this morning.
The prime minister's official spokesman said: "We welcome Karzai's inauguration.
"His speech this morning offers hope for the Afghan people, with its emphasis on tackling corruption and improving governance, 'Afghanisation' of security, economic development, better regional relations - and his inclusive gestures reaching out to the defeated candidates and all Afghans.
"We believe that Karzai set out today a clear commitment to deliver in the areas which the PM highlighted as being crucial for the new government to tackle.
"There are very clear expectations of Karzai's second term on the part of entire international community. We now want to see Karzai deliver for all Afghans, and we will work with him to ensure that he does."