Afghan National Security Adviser Hanif Atmar (2R) and NATO’s Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan Maurits Jochems (R) hold their documents after signing the Status of Forces Agreement documents as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani (C) and Afghanistan’s new Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah (2L) look on at the Presidential Palace in Kabul on September 30, 2014. Afghanistan and the United States on September 30 signed a deal to allow some US troops to stay in the country next year, signalling that new President Ashraf Ghani intends to mend frayed ties with Washington. Hamid Karzai, who stepped down as president on September 29, refused to sign the deal in a disagreement that symbolised the breakdown of Afghan-US relations after the optimism of 2001 when the Taliban were ousted from power. Afghan National Security Adviser Hanif Atmar and US Ambassador James Cunningham inked the document at a ceremony in the presidential palace in Kabul as Ghani stood behind the pair looking on. AFP PHOTO/SHAH Marai