Ilham Aliyev: Armenia’s occupation of Azerbaijani lands must end

President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly George Tsereteli was on an official visit to Baku to attend the first conference of Silk Road Support Group of the OSCE PA, as well as discuss the cooperation of the OSCE PA with Azerbaijan, the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and other issues.

President Ilham Aliyev received Tsereteli and his delegation on March 12. The sides hailed the successful cooperation between Azerbaijan and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, noting that one of the OSCE PA sessions will be held in Azerbaijan.

They stressed the importance of the fact that the first international session of the Silk Road Support Group is held in Baku, that they believe will contribute to the strengthening of cooperation.

Touching upon the ArmeniaAzerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, President Aliyev said that Armenia’s occupation of Azerbaijani lands must end and this conflict must be resolved within Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity.

The upcoming presidential election in Azerbaijan was also highlighted during the meeting. The head of state expressed his confidence that the election will be fair, transparent and reflect the will of the Azerbaijani people.

Tsereteli, in turn, said he is deeply impressed with the development processes in Baku. He emphasized that Azerbaijan’s economic achievements are of great interest and this contributes to the overall development of the region.

At the meeting with Azerbai- jani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov later in the day, Tsereteli said the OSCE PA will observe the presidential elec- tion i n Azerbaijan proceeding from an unbiased and neutral position.

Previously, it was reported that as many as 13,820 Azerbaijani citizens will vote in polling stations to be established outside the country.

Fifteen candidates have been nominated for the presidential election in Azerbaijan. Seven candidates have been registered so far.The documents of other candidates are being considered.

The presidential election in Azerbaijan, the largest South Caucasus state on the Caspian shore, is to be held on April 11, according to an order signed on February 5 by the country's President Ilham Aliyev. Pre-election campaign in Azerbaijan will begin on March 19 and end on April 10 at 08:00.