Obama calls Afghan candidates, urges 'unity' amid election audit delays
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 25 July 2014 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Obama calls Afghan candidates, urges 'unity' amid election audit delays, 25 July 2014, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/54003e40ae2.html [accessed 1 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
July 25, 2014
By RFE/RL
The White House says U.S. President Barack Obama spoke by telephone with Afghanistan's two presidential candidates and urged them to "maintain national unity" amid an acrimonious and sluggish audit of the country's June 14 presidential runoff.
The White House said in a statement that during the July 25 conversations with rival candidates Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani, Obama thanked the two men for agreeing to accept the audit of every ballot cast in the election.
The audit has been plagued by disputes and delays, and as of July 23, only around 4 percent of the ballot boxes had been examined.
Prior to the agreement to have the ballots scrutinized, Abdullah had claimed massive fraud and disputed preliminary results that gave Ghani a 1 million-vote lead, raising fears of violence.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
