Baku, October 7. Head of the CIS observation mission Sergei Lebedev met with the Chairman of the Central Election Commission Mazahir Panahov, the Independent Press Center reported.

The CEC chairman highlighted great importance of the observation institution for ensuring transparency of elections. He said he is glad to see the observation members in Azerbaijan.

Lebedev said that a group of the CIS observation mission had been in Azerbaijan since September 10 to monitor the pre-election situation. Along with Baku, the observers also visited the regions of the country where they held a number of meetings and learned about the pre-election situation. Other members of the mission will make a trip to the regions and observe the voting process at the polling stations.

It was noted that overall development of Azerbaijan paved the way for the democratic, free, transparent and fair conduct of elections. The delegation was updated on the steps taken to prepare for and conduct the October 9 presidential elections.