WASHINGTON: The US special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, James Dobbins, is leaving his position this month, the State Department said on Wednesday.

His replacement, Daniel Feldman, focused on Pakistan while working as a deputy to Mr Dobbins and his predecessors, Marc Grossman and Richard Holbrooke.

Mr Dobbins had close relations with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

The Office of the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan coordinates across the government to meet US strategic goals in the region while engaging Nato and other key US allies.

Mr Dobbins, 72, came out of retirement last year to serve in the post.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said Mr Dobbins had “a lot to be proud of”, having been at the “forefront” of US efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Mr Dobbins’ retirement, after just over a year in office, comes as the two candidates to be Afghanistan’s next president wrangle over alleged fraud, sparking a political crisis that threatens the country’s first democratic transfer of power.

Secretary Kerry observed that the outgoing diplomat “played an outsized role on the ground”, negotiating the bilateral security agreement with the Afghan government, making preparations for the elections, and planning for a transition for the Afghan people after more than a decade of progress.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2014