S. Korea welcomes recent power-sharing deal between rival Afghan leaders

SEOUL, May 19 (Yonhap) -- The foreign ministry on Tuesday welcomed a recent power-sharing deal between rival Afghan leaders that paved the way for political stability in the conflict-laden country.

On Sunday, Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani and his rival Abdullah Abdullah inked the deal under which the latter will appoint half of the cabinet ministers in pursuit of a balance of power between the leaders.

"The government expects that the domestic political situation in Afghanistan will stabilize based on this agreement," Kim In-chul, the ministry's spokesman, said in a statement. "Our government will continuously participate in international efforts toward stability and the establishment of peace in Afghanistan."

Afghanistan has gone through a political crisis as both Ghani and Abdullah claimed to have won the presidential poll in September despite the election authorities' view that the incumbent leader narrowly won the election.

sshluck@yna.co.kr
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