BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 7. Partners within the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) are interested in the complete restoration of peace in the South Caucasus, the Secretary General of the CIS, head of the observer mission from the organization Sergey Lebedev told reporters, Trend reports.
He made the remark while observing the voting process during the extraordinary presidential election in Azerbaijan at polling station No. 38 of the Nasimi-Sabail electoral constituency No. 23 (Baku Museum Center).
"We are your neighbors, and CIS partners are also greatly interested in ensuring full restoration of peace, establishment of stability, and creation of conditions for further progressive development in the South Caucasus. Not only Russia but also neighboring countries such as Georgia, Iran, and Türkiye actively participate in these efforts. We sincerely hope that these collective efforts for the complete restoration of peace and stability in the South Caucasus will be successful as soon as possible," he added.
To note, voting in the presidential election is going on in Azerbaijan.
Candidates for the presidency in the upcoming election include incumbent President Ilham Aliyev (New Azerbaijan Party), independent contenders Zahid Oruj and Fuad Aliyev, Razi Nurullayev (National Front Party), Fazil Mustafa (Great Order Party), Elshad Musayev (Great Azerbaijan Party), and Gudrat Gasanguliyev (Whole Azerbaijan Popular Front Party).
From 08:00 (GMT+4), polling stations will be open for voters, and close at 19:00. The Central Election Commission Secretariat's Information Center will share preliminary updates on the voting process and results at 15:00, 17:00, and 19:00 Baku time.
The crucial cutoff for candidate registration came on January 9, with seven contenders now in the race for the presidential seat.
The voter roll boasts 6,478,623 people who will cast their votes across 6,537 polling stations throughout the country.
A total of 90,372 observers are registered to monitor the election, with 790 of them representing 72 international organizations from 89 countries.
For the first time in the history of independent Azerbaijan, the upcoming election will span across the entire country, including the lands liberated from Armenian occupation in 2020. In the liberated territories, 26 polling stations have been established.
For Azerbaijani citizens residing abroad, 49 polling stations have been established in the embassies and consulates of 37 countries. This allows over 23,000 expatriates to participate in the voting process from various corners of the globe.
A robust media presence of 190 international entities is dedicated to observing the election, with 216 of their representatives officially registered as international observers.
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