On January 14, 1990, Bush sent a delegation to South Asia as part of an accelerated effort to find a settlement to the Afghanistan war. The decision came as the possibilities of cutting of arms from both superpowers as well as a coalition government and larger role in the United Nations were raised. The following month, Pakistan announced it was withdrawing its support for a military solution in Afghanistan and that it had conveyed to the US that it was not opposed to a solution keeping President Mohammad Najibullah in power. Pakistan National Security Advisor Iqbal Akhund reported the US proposal was not warmly received by the Soviets and he was doubtful the idea could work in part because of the Soviets' insistence that Najibullah remain in power. In May, American and Pakistan officials disclosed the Soviet Union had dropped its insistence that President Najibullah remain in power in a future Afghanistan government while the US had softened to its insistence that Najibullah renounce his claim to the presidency. American officials also stated that while the US and Soviet Union retained major areas of disagreement, "the differences had been narrowed in recent weeks as both sides concluded that elections might be the best way to end the war."
