Afghanistan at 'critical juncture'

Karzai was sworn in for a second term on Thursday, winning Western praise as he promised to combat corruption.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday that Afghanistan was at a "critical juncture" as he congratulated President Hamid Karzai on his inauguration for a second term.

- The Secretary-General sends his best wishes to the president and to the people of Afghanistan at this critical juncture in their history and reaffirms the determination of the United Nations to support Afghanistan's progress towards peace, stability and development - a statement said.

The world body earlier this month announced the evacuation of more than half its foreign staff from Afghanistan after Taliban gunmen stormed a Kabul hostel in a dawn attack that killed five UN workers.

The statement from Ban's office welcomed pledges from Karzai in his inauguration speech to clamp down on corruption and said the UN would continue working with him to ensure a more stable and better served country.

- He welcomes the commitment of President Karzai to serve all Afghans, to fight corruption and to bring increased good governance, security and services to the country, as expressed in the president's inaugural speech - it said.

- In pursuance of realizing these goals concretely, the United Nations looks forward to working with President Karzai and his government, the people of Afghanistan, and Afghanistan's international partners. -

Karzai was sworn in for a second term on Thursday, winning Western praise as he promised to combat corruption, bring security and reach out to political rivals.

Karzai took the oath of office as the US-led war in Afghanistan stretches into a ninth year, leaving record numbers of soldiers and civilians dead and with Taliban control extending deeper into the country after an election mired in fraud.

In a wide-ranging speech, Karzai promised action on the worst problems that preoccupy his Western backers, who are weary after pouring more than 100,000 troops and billions of dollars of aid into Afghanistan with little in return.