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24.01.2010 Sports News

Secretary-General to attend major Afghan conference in London next week

24.01.2010 LISTEN
By UN

21 January - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will take part in next week's international conference aimed at helping Afghanistan to chart its way forward in the wake of last year's presidential elections and build a more secure and prosperous country, it was announced today.

Mr. Ban is co-hosting the so-called London Conference, which will be held in the British capital on 28 January, with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and United Kingdom Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

The Secretary-General has said previously that the conference offers “a very timely” opportunity to discuss Afghanistan's agenda following the recent elections, in which Mr. Karzai won another term as President.

The gathering aims to establish a strong compact between Mr. Karzai, his Government and his people, and to also set up a strong partnership between the Afghan people and the international community.

After the London conference, Mr. Ban is then scheduled to visit Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to attend the summit of the African Union (AU), his spokesperson Martin Nesirky told reporters today.

While in Addis Ababa, the UN chief is also slated to hold a series of bilateral meetings with heads of State and government at the summit.

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