Japan praises Afghan people, gov't for holding elections as planned+

TOKYO, Aug. 21 Kyodo -
Japan congratulated the government and people of Afghanistan on Friday for
holding presidential and provincial elections amid poor security conditions.

''I want to express my respect for the efforts of the Afghan citizens who went
to the polls and the government that assisted the implementation of the
election amid this grave security situation,'' Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo
Kawamura told a news conference.
Noting that the polling was conducted in most parts of the country as planned,
he said Japan now hopes that votes will be counted properly and the results
announced in a swift manner.
''We will be watching the results closely,'' he said.
The country's second presidential election was held Thursday along with
provincial elections amid scattered attacks and Taliban threats. Vote counting
began later in the evening.
Early results could be announced within days, but a final result could take
several weeks.
==Kyodo