The US Ambassador to Afghanistan John Bass said that Washington supports the decision by the Independent Election Commission to validate only biometric votes.

Bass said the election commissions should continue their work independently, with full US support.

He said that the important point is to protect the transparency in the process:

“We also discussed the importance of clarifying to the Afghan people how many polling centers and polling stations were closed and where they were located, so as the biometric process goes forward, people have confidence that the electronic results reflects the physical results,” said Bass.

Bass made the remarks while visiting the election commission.

“I am here today to verify and assess the progress in compiling the results of the election and to assess the degree to which the process of producing the result is going to honor the sacrifices of the brave Afghan people who died trying to vote, of the brave members of the security forces who died protecting their right to vote,” said Bass.

Bass stressed the need for the sovereignty and independence of the election management bodies of the country.

“I have reinforced with the commission the commitment of the United States to supporting the independence of the electoral commissions and supporting their ability to achieve the right conclusion. I have reinforced with the commission the importance that we put on the integrity of the vote which means the integrity of the ballot process,” he said.