UN urges Karzai to fight corruption

The UN Security Council joined calls Friday on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to fight corruption, with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon calling the country's political situation "delicate" following deeply flawed elections.

In a tepid statement, the Council "acknowledged" rather than welcomed the conclusion of the tumultuous electoral process where Karzai was declared the winner after challenger Abdullah Abdullah withdrew from a runoff race saying it could not be free or fair.

Afghanistan yesterday rejected criticism of Karzai by foreign leaders and the senior UN official in the country, accusing them of disrespecting the country's sovereignty.

Kai Eide, the UN's special representative to Afghanistan, was among those who this week warned Karzai that he could lose international support unless his new government tackled endemic official corruption.

The Afghan foreign ministry issued a statement rejecting such criticism, saying it breached "accepted international norms" and "violated respect for Afghanistan's national sovereignty".

On Saturday the foreign ministry in Kabul issued a statement rejecting such criticism, saying they breached "accepted international norms" and "violated respect for Afghanistan's national sovereignty."

Abdullah on Wednesday called Karzai's victory illegal and his government a failure, saying the president's tainted administration would not be able to check corruption or fend off the Taliban.

Ban acknowledged there were problems with the elections, following a closed-door meeting briefing the Security Council on his recent trip to Afghanistan.

"It is obvious that the political situation remains delicate," Ban said. "Clearly, the recent elections were seriously flawed."