Washington urges free, fair, and transparent process leading up to and on election day in Azerbaijan, State Department official said.

“The United States encourages the peaceful participation of all people in Azerbaijan in the election process, and urges restraint and avoidance of violence or provocations by all before, during, and after election day. We also urge the authorities to protect the fundamental freedoms of expression, assembly, and association,” Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf told the briefing on Monday.

Asked whether the Azerbaijan government is properly guaranteeing those freedoms, Marie Harf said pointed to the reports that had been recently made.

“I think one came out from the OSCE just recently about some of the issues involved with human rights in this election. I think that report objectively reflected the positive and negative aspects of the campaign period. There have been some of each. So we continue to urge the authorities to make sure going forward that they protect these fundamental freedoms of expression, assembly, and association.”