AP Interview: Afghan candidate praises Karzai --- KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A leading Afghan presidential candidate praised Hamid Karzai for allowing the country's first democratic transition of power and said Thursday that he'll offer the longtime leader an advisory role if he wins this weekend's election. -- Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai spoke to The Associated Press in a wide-ranging interview two days before Afghans go to the polls to choose a new president. -- "President Karzai took office under extremely difficult circumstances and he's the first man in our 5,000 years of recorded history that is voluntarily ceding power under a constitution based on the will of the people to his successor," Ahmadzai said. -- "If I'm that successor, I'll be honoring that president by seeking his advice and by creating a special office as the first elected president of the country where he would have a role and a voice in national affairs, regional affairs and international affairs," Ahmadzai added. -- Presidential spokesman Aimal Faizi said Karzai would continue to serve his country. -- "As a retired president and a citizen of Afghanistan, President Karzai will always be at the service of the Afghans and will be ready to advise the next president only if he is asked," Faizi said in response to a query about Ahmadzai's proposal. -- The 64-year-old Ahmadzai is considered one of the main contenders in a crowded field of eight candidates. The other two front-runners are Abdullah Abdullah, who was Karzai's main rival in the disputed 2009 election, and former Foreign Minister Zalmai Rassoul. --- Most experts doubt any of the candidates will get the majority needed for an outright win in Saturday's vote so a runoff is widely anticipated. -- He said that if elected, he will sign a security agreement with the United States, defending the pact as the best way to professionalize Afghan security forces and establish the country's sovereignty. -- "I will be submitting the bilateral security agreement to parliament within the first week and as soon as parliament approves, it I'll be signing it," Ahmadzai said "The country needs confidence, our security forces need confidence. The economy is deteriorating and at a standstill because of lack of confidence over this agreement." -- Ahmadzai, who studied in the U.S. but returned to Afghanistan after the Taliban were ousted, said he doesn't believe that a runoff is a foregone conclusion. -- He expressed confidence that his aggressive campaigning in recent weeks during which he shuttled between provinces for mass rallies and participated in public debates has given him a strong advantage. --- Ahmadzai also pointed out that he was the only candidate to appear at one televised debate focusing on the economy earlier this week. -- "The number of people who are undecided, I think are making up their minds, and all the signs point out that what we have presented to the public ... has made a decisive shift," he said, sitting in a reception room with colorful rugs covering the floor and a wooden ceiling modeled after a mosque with nine domes. -- "With this in mind I think victory in the first round is possible." - More, KIM GAMEL, Associated Press, at: http://www.newstimes.com/news/world/article/AP-Interview-Afghan-candidate-praises-Karzai-5372479.php