THE EU ambassador to Afghanistan has admitted the upcoming parliamentary elections are likely to be undemocratic as a circle of bloody violence continues to cripple the country.

Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf pulled out of a meeting of more than 600 Pakistani and Afghan tribal leaders, an apparent snub to a US-backed strategy to stem rising border violence that has destabilised both countries.

TODAY millions of Afghans will go to the polls to select their president for the next five years.