BONN, Dec 3 (AFP) - A final agreement on Afghanistan's political future is unlikely to be struck before Tuesday after rival groups proposed a series of amendments to a United Nations draft accord, a UN spokesman told AFP Monday.

"I don't think we will have a final agreement to announce before Tuesday," spokesman Ahmad Fawzi said as the landmark talks went into their seventh day.

Fawzi was speaking after delegates wrapped up a gruelling six and a half-hour meeting, which ended at 2:00 am (0100 GMT).

During the meeting, delegates from the four Afghan groups at the talks here in Germany examined a seven-page UN draft accord providing for a six-month interim authority leading to the convening of a Loya Jirga, or traditional grand council of elders.

"The delegates reviewed the draft agreement proposed by the UN line by line," Fawzi said in a telephone interview from the secluded hill-top Petersberg government residence near Bonn.

"They came up with very good remarks, it was a useful and comprehensive debate, and now the UN team will incorporate all these amendments into the text."

Fawzi explained that this entailed again drawing up a fresh draft in three languages -- English, Dari and Pashtu -- presenting a complex task for UN translators.

Furthermore, he said the UN had yet to receive formal nominations for the interim government from all the four groups.

"We have no formal proposition for the members of the interim administration," he said, adding that the talks would resume at 2:00 pm (1300 GMT) Monday.

ob-sas/pvh AFP

Copyright (c) 2001 Agence France-Presse
Received by NewsEdge Insight: 12/02/2001 21:44:13

©AFP 2001: The information provided in this product is for personal use only. None of it may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without the express permission of Agence France-Presse.