EU election monitors arrive in Afghanistan

KABUL - As Afghan presidential and provincial councils elections draw near, the European Union Election Assessment Team (EU EAT) has arrived in Afghanistan at the invitation of Afghan election commission, chief observer of the team Thijs Berman said on Thursday.

The team, which consists of 16 international experts from 13 European countries, has been deployed in Afghanistan since March 15, he said.

"Only a good electoral process, where voters, winners and losers are proud of their engagement, and confident about the reality of the results, will offer the best prospect for the years to come. That is the challenge of these elections," he told a press conference here.

Berman, who is a Dutch member of the European Parliament, added, "We will focus on the key stages of the electoral process, such as the legal and electoral framework, the election campaign, the media environment, the vote counting, and the handling of eventual election complaints."

The delegation will stay in Afghanistan until completion of the electoral process during which it will visit several provinces including Kandahar, Herat, Nangarhar and Balkh.

Some 300,000 national and international observers will monitor the Afghan presidential and provincial councils elections scheduled for April 5.