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BAKU: U.S. Ambasador To OSCE:"U.S. Observes Elections Processes Azer

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  • BAKU: U.S. Ambasador To OSCE:"U.S. Observes Elections Processes Azer

    U.S. AMBASADOR TO OSCE: "U.S. OBSERVES ELECTIONS PROCESSES AZERBAIJAN WITH GREAT INTEREST"

    Today, Azerbaijan
    Sept 6 2005

    The United States is watching the election process in Azerbaijan with
    great interest.

    We appreciate the progress made to date.

    As we have stated on many occasions, the United States strongly
    supports free and fair elections in Azerbaijan, U.S. Ambassador
    to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
    Julie Finley briefly outlined basic U.S. policies on several issues
    relating to the South Caucasus at a meeting of the OSCE Permanent
    Council in Vienna, Austria, September 1.

    Secretary of State Rice spoke with President Aliyev about this just
    last week. We look for guarantees that those who campaign will be free
    of harassment and intimidation. We look for guarantees that parties
    and candidates will have equal access to the media. And we look for
    guarantees, that in the post-election period, the voters of Azerbaijan
    will see the honest results of their voting - in the cities, towns,
    and villages, she said.

    The United States supports Georgia's territorial integrity and
    continues to support peaceful settlement of the South Ossetia and
    Abkhazia conflicts in Georgia, she said. The United States remain
    concerned that the situation in South Ossetia is tense.

    "We call on both sides to fulfill previous agreements to bring greater
    stability to the situation on the ground. We urge both sides to engage
    in a direct dialogue to restore confidence and begin discussions toward
    the resolution of the status of South Ossetia within Georgia. We
    believe that economic cooperation and confidence-building measures
    have an important role to play and are encouraged by progress in
    this regard. We urge the international community, and particularly
    the Russian Federation, to lend support to such efforts," she stressed.

    Finley noted that the United States supports fully the continuing
    work of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs to facilitate a peaceful, negotiated
    settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In her recent phone calls
    with Armenian President Kocharian and Azerbaijani President Aliyev,
    Secretary Rice encouraged each president to make the compromises
    necessary to reach such a settlement. The Minsk Group Co-Chairs have
    indicated a desire to brief the full Minsk Group in the near future
    on the progress of the negotiation process.
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