Moscow: UN Must Legitimize Afghanistan's New Leadership

After a collective ruling body, such as a Supreme State Council, is created in Afghanistan, the United Nations must move to recognize and thereby legitimize Afghanistan's new government, a senior source in the Russian delegation to the 56th UN General Assembly session suggested. He feels "it is important that this process develop dynamically enough in combination with the measures of a military nature." At the same time, it is necessary to move to normalization of the political process in Afghanistan once the proper conditions are in place. The international community will have to contribute broad support to the process, including economic and humanitarian aid, the official said. A further stage in the normalization, both in Afghanistan and the region as a whole, would involve calling a broad UN-sponsored international donor conference, the diplomat told RIA Novosti. The sources said Moscow envisages the conference as aimed at working out concrete solutions for long-term assistance in Afghanistan's revival.