WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th March, 2020) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement that the United States is opposed to any dual rule in Afghanistan following the inauguration of Abdullah Abdullah who disputes the electoral victory of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
"The United States strongly supports a unified and sovereign Afghanistan and is engaged in intensive efforts for peace," Pompeo said on Monday. "We strongly oppose any action to establish a parallel government and any use of force to resolve political differences."
Earlier on Monday, both Ghani and Abdullah held inauguration ceremonies at roughly the same time.
The ceremonies suggest that mediation efforts by US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad - including an overnight negotiation session - failed to build consensus between the Afghan political rivals in a bid to avoid a split government.
The presidential vote in Afghanistan took place on September 28. The announcement of results was postponed repeatedly due to an audit of votes in several provinces. It was not until February that the Afghan Election Commission announced that Ghani had won a slim majority of 50.64 percent - an outcome that Abdullah rejected to recognize.
