London, February 9 (Sputnik). The United Kingdom revealed alleged irregularities in the elections for the President of Azerbaijan on February 7, according to the statement published by the British Foreign Office on Friday.
“The elections were held in limited circumstances and in the absence of real political alternatives. “Serious violations have occurred, some of which are inconsistent with the 1990 Copenhagen Declaration, which stipulates human rights and fundamental freedoms,” the document says.
The British Foreign Office called on Baku to cooperate with the OSCE mission and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. It is noteworthy that the United Kingdom sent 10 observers to Azerbaijan to monitor the electoral process in that country.
At the same time, the UK praised the calm atmosphere that prevailed in the elections and the possibility of “internally displaced populations being forced to vote in their historic constituencies,” the document highlighted.
A British Foreign Office spokesperson commented: “Azerbaijan is an important partner of the United Kingdom and we stand ready to support its electoral reforms and improve the democratic process.”
On Friday, the Central Election Commission of Azerbaijan announced the victory of current President Ilham Aliyev in the early presidential elections with 92.12 percent of the votes after all votes were counted.
Initially, presidential elections in Azerbaijan were scheduled to be held in October 2025, but in December 2023, the country's president called for early elections on February 7, 2024 following the events in Nagorno-Karabakh. (Sputnik)
