UN calls for talks to form Afghan government

Facing a power vacuum in Afghanistan with the Taliban on the run, the United Nations urged Afghan groups to meet ‘‘as early as humanly possible’’ about forming a transitional government backed by an international force.

As northern alliance soldiers replaced fleeing Taliban forces in the Afghan capital of Kabul, the UN Security Council met yesterday to hear recommendations from Lakhdar Brahimi, the chief UN envoy for Afghanistan, for a post-Taliban government administered by Afghans.