Afghan lawmakers adjourn despite Cabinet standoff

KABUL: The Afghan parliament announced yesterday it will recess for several weeks without waiting for President Hamid Karzai to offer a new list of Cabinet nominees after he failed two times to form a full government.

Karzai's spokesman said the president would name caretaker ministers for the vacant posts and conceded it was not likely the president would have a Cabinet in place before a Jan 28 international conference in London.

Washington and its allies have been pressing Karzai to assemble his second-term administration ahead of the London conference, which is aimed at streamlining aid efforts for Afghanistan.