The UN secretary general has urged a change of position on Afghanistan to improve the security situation in the South Central Asian country.
"The situation cannot continue as is if we are to succeed in Afghanistan. Unity of effort and greater attention to key priorities are now a sine qua non," Ban Ki-moon told the UN Security Council in a report released Monday that focuses on a disputed presidential election in the country in 2009 and on Taliban attacks.
"There is a need for a change of mindset in the international community as well as in the government of Afghanistan. Without that change, the prospects of success will diminish further," he said.
"We are now at a critical juncture," the report said.
Ban Ki-moon called on the international community to do everything possible in the next few months under the UN auspices to develop Afghanistan's economy.
"If the negative trends are not corrected, there is a risk that the deteriorating overall situation will become irreversible. We cannot afford this," he said.
UNITED NATIONS, January 5 (RIA Novosti)
