1 November 2009 - Dr Abdullah has decided today not to participate in the second round of Afghanistan’s presidential election.

This is clearly a decision he has taken after a long period of discussion and reflection. The next step must be to bring this electoral process to a conclusion in a legal and timely manner.

During his campaign Dr Abdullah acted in a statesmanlike and dignified way and put forward a number of constructive proposals for reform which I hope will be part of the political agenda for Afghanistan’s future.