Santiago - Afghanistan's ambassador to Canada, Omar Samad, presented his Letters of Credence to Her Excellency Michelle Bachelet, President of the Republic of Chile during a formal ceremony at the Moneda Palace, on Tuesday in Santiago.

Over the past six and half years, Afghanistan has done its utmost to remove any misunderstaning and ease tension between the two countries and focused all its eforst for further promoting..........

“The Government of Afghanistan welcomes the announcement made today by the Government of Canada kicking off the process of repairs and rehabilitation of the all-important Dahla Dam in the province of Kandahar.

I would like to express my warmest regards and gratitude for convening this important meeting that demonstrates the commitment of the international comunity.........

26 High level UN and Country Representatives, including the Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan and Pakistan, addressed the security and humanitarian challenges of the situation in Afghanistan.  Please see below detailed note of the deliberations by delegates and their strong commitment to deliver aid more effectively to the Afghan people.

Afghanistan: We renew our commitment to support Afghanistan. We, at the same time, strongly encourage the Afghan Government to assume greater responsibility for security, governance and reconstruction. We support the strengthened mandate of UNAMA and Special Representative of UN Secretary-General Kai Eide in their key role as overall coordinator.

Arg, Kabul – His Excellency Hamid Karzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, strongly condemned today's terrorist attack in Kabul.

Early this morning, a suicide bomber rammed his car full of explosives into the gates of the Indian embassy in Kabul, martyring more than 30 innocent civilians and injuring many more, including women and children.

The Afghan Ambassador speaks at the Growing Inclusive Markets Forum held in Halifax, NS, at Dalhousie University, which drew more than 200 delegates from over 40 countries to focus on the role private sector partnerships, entrepreneurship and grass-roots development in alleviating world poverty. Former Canadian Prime Minister, Hon. Paul Martin, also spoke at this forum.

Amb. Samad was introduced by Mark Parent, Nova Scotia Minister of Environment and Labor. Following the keynote speech, Hon. Kevin Sorenson, MP and chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, expressed his appreciation and outlined Canada’s role in promoting private sector partnerships as part of global development. Mrs. Maryam Sidiqi, Director of the Afghan Women Business Council based in Kabul also attended this forum.

Ambassador Samad joins panel discussion hosted by The Friedrich Ebert Foundation and The North-South Institute at the Canadian War Museum on “German and Canadian Perpsectives on Statebuilding in Afghanistan: Moving forward from the 2008 Paris Conference”.

President Nicolas Sarkozy,

Secretary General Ban Ki Moon,

First Lady, Laura Bush,

Distinguished delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure to join President Sarkozy and the Secretary General in opening this international conference in support of Afghanistan. I welcome you all. Your participation is a testimony of your firm commitment to the stability, peace and reconstruction of Afghanistan, for which I am deeply grateful. 

The Governement of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the international community met today in Paris to reaffirm their long-term partnership to serve the people of Afghanistan, their security, prosperity and human rights.

Ottawa – Omar Samad, the Ambassador of Afghanistan to Canada, issued the following statement on Thursday, June 12:

“Representatives from more than 80 nations and international organizations attended the International Conference in Support of Afghanistan, co-chaired by France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy, President Hamid Karzai and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in Paris today, and pledged generously to help Afghanistan’s five-year strategy to enhance security and boost social and economic development.

While Canada's ambassador to Afghanistan has been leading diplomatic efforts to secure the Afghan-Pakistan border, both countries are calling for the other to get serious about stopping the Taliban insurgents who crisscross the porous border with apparent ease.

Meanwhile, a visiting U.S. diplomat has issued a clarion call for a broader regional compact that would see Afghanistan's neighbours get their acts together.

NEW YORK (PAN): The Afghan ambassador has praised Canada as a role-model for all those who want to help his country, devastated by decades of strife.

"Not only is Canada ranked among the top five donors, delivers on its pledges and is a force for stability in Kandahar, it is also becoming a role model for many others ," Omar Samad said in Vancouver.

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Allow me first to thank the organizers and sponsors of this important international development event, namely CIDA, the Government of Canada and Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, for the kind invitation to talk about a very timely issue, which for once does not seem to focus on such media-driven topics as detainees, Taliban atrocities or your parliamentary debate.

Merci beaucoup Madame la Présidente, Carole Chouinard. Je voudrais aussi saluer M. Goldy Hyder pour initier cette invitation aujourd’hui.

I may be wrong, but I think that over the past 105 years of this club’s history, I am the second Samad to be speaking from the prestigious Canadian Club podium… the first, my wife Khorshied, sitting a few feet away enjoying her desert, spoke to the women’s club last year. However, that was in Ottawa and this is Gatineau… qui me permet plus facilement de pratiquer la belle langue Française… avec un accent Afghan évidement.