Following is an excerpt from the transcript of Fleischer's December 5 briefing, containing his comment about Afghanistan:

Q: Ari, what's the White House reaction to the agreement signed in Bonn by the parties who have been negotiating a future for the Afghan government? Does it meet the standards that the White House has set out -- broad-based, ethnically diverse, women involved?

MR. FLEISCHER: The President is very pleased with the agreement that's been reached on Bonn concerning the future of the Afghanistan government. He believes it is a positive agreement that bodes well for the people of Afghanistan. This vote will allow the people of Afghanistan to take -- this development will allow the people of Afghanistan to take their country back, and the President is very pleased by that. He's pleased by the multiethnic nature of the agreement. He's pleased by the role that women will play in the future government of Afghanistan. He wants to express his congratulations and praise to Secretary General Annan, as well as to Ambassador Brahimi, for their hard work in delivering this accord.

But much more work remains ahead. This is an important development in the future of Afghanistan, but it's only, in many ways, the beginning. A lot of hard work remains for Afghanistan now to have a stable government that represents and respects the people of Afghanistan. It still will be difficult because Afghanistan is still a nation that is the middle of a war.