Karzai's acceptance only first step

KABUL, Afghanistan, Oct. 21 (UPI) -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai's acceptance of a presidential runoff didn't come easily but is still only the first step in a hard process, a U.S. official said.

The decision accepting the runoff set for Nov. 7 is expected to help in creating a credible government following the Aug. 20 elections marred by massive vote-fraud allegations.

The official told The New York Times there was heavy pressure on Karzai from both European and U.S. officials, including even veiled threats about the future of coalition forces in Afghanistan.

The new questions among diplomats, however, are whether the runoff can be arranged in the next three weeks, whether it will be free of fraud and whether there will be enough security in the face of escalating Taliban violence, the report said.

With those questions unanswered, the report said U.S. and other Western allies expect intense effort in the coming day to see if Karzai and his main election rival Abdullah Abdullah can work out a deal to avert the runoff.

But for now, Karzai appeared to reject such a possibility.

"The coalition has no legitimacy and is not possible," he said Tuesday, while standing with U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., who reportedly conducted marathon negotiations with Karzai.

Some officials told The Times any likely deal would require Abdullah to yield to Karzai in exchange for a major role in overhauling the Constitution to reduce the president's powers.