Statement by OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara in connection with Presidential Election in Azerbaijan

KYIV, 10 October 2013 – OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara made today the following statement in connection with the Presidential Election in Azerbaijan.

“On 9 October 2013 the Azerbaijani people went to the polls to elect their President. I welcome the fact that the Presidential Election in Azerbaijan was monitored by a large number of observers from authoritative international organizations, including the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Council of Europe, the European Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States and others, as well as by many national delegations from the OSCE Participating States. The short-term OSCE observer mission was led by the Special Co-ordinator Michel Voisin appointed by the Ukrainian OSCE Chairmanship.

“I take note of the statement of preliminary findings and conclusions made by the OSCE International Observation Mission as well as the comments of the Special Co-ordinator. I also take note of the Joint Statement made by the election observation delegations of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament, as well as the statements by other international observers. In these statements the international observers conclude that a number of aspects of the conduct of the Presidential Election in Azerbaijan showed progress towards meeting the OSCE and Council of Europe commitments and other international standards for democratic elections, while also outlining the areas which need to be further improved.

“In this regard, I congratulate the people and the leadership of Azerbaijan on this achievement that represents an important step forward in democratic development of their country. I am confident that Azerbaijan will continue its efforts aimed at further strengthening its democratic institutions. The Ukrainian OSCE Chairmanship looks forward to continuing the mutually beneficial co-operation between the OSCE and Azerbaijan aimed at implementing the OSCE principles and commitments.”