The British Ambassador, Mark Sedwill, welcomed the start of the election audit process on 5 October. He said, "I am pleased that the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) have agreed the process to audit those ballot boxes where fraud is suspected to have occurred. This is a crucial step to address concerns about fraud and ensure all and only genuine votes are counted. The IEC and the ECC are taking every measure available to ensure the transparency and credibility of this process. I am glad that candidate agents are observing the audit.

"I pay tribute to the Afghan people, who have shown admirable patience during this extended process. I also welcome the calm leadership and steady professionalism shown by the UN Secretary General's Special Representative to Afghanistan, Kai Eide, during this crucial period. We look forward to a certified Presidential election result as soon as the audit and complaints processes have been completed."

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