P.V.Anandpadmanabhan
Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, a former World Bank official was sworn in as Afghanistan's new president on Monday. In his first address to media persons as Afghanistan's chief executive, Ghani said his country was "besieged with problems," and called on the Taliban and other militant groups to come to the negotiating table with Kabul.
"War is not the way to solve political issues," he said, adding, "Those who believe in the use of force will be dealt with the same way."
Ghani, who won the June 14 presidential election, was sworn in at a ceremony in the heavily guarded presidential palace in Kabul, with various dignitaries and Afghanistan's most prominent politicians in attendance.
