State Dept: U.S. 'Closely Monitoring' Azerbaijan's Presidential Election

The United States said on Monday that it's 'closely monitoring' Azerbaijan's presidential election, which is scheduled to take place this Wednesday, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

"We are closely monitoring Azerbaijan’s presidential election. We would refer you to the OSCE ODIHR election observation mission on their findings regarding the election," State Department's Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told TURAN's Washington correspondent when asked about the U.S.' position on the upcoming snap elections, as well as the OSCE interim report highlighting some concerns over restrictions.

On Sunday, Nik Gugger, an OSCE/ODIHR short-term observer from Switzerland, was prevented from entering Azerbaijan. In its latest interim report last week, the OSCE ODIHR Election Observation Mission highlighted that the constitution guarantees freedom of expression, freedom of the media, and the right to access information, however the restrictions are not sufficiently defined.

President Ilham Aliyev last December published a decree announcing that he was bringing the 2025 elections forward to February 7. He is expected to secure a fifth consecutive term this week.

In the meantime, in run-up to election, authorities in Baku are accused of crackdown on journalists due to the arrest of at least nine journalists from prominent outlets since last November.

The New-York based Committee to Protect Journalists on Monday called on Azerbaijani authorities to ensure access to internet and free information throughout presidential elections.