MINSK, 26 January (BelTA) – On the invitation of the Central Election Commission of Turkmenistan, the CIS observation mission has embarked on the monitoring of the presidential election campaign in the country, BelTA learned from the CIS Executive Committee website.
Viktor Guminsky, the CIS First Deputy Executive Secretary, First Deputy Chairman of the CIS Executive Committee, met with the Chairperson of the Central Election Commission of Turkmenistan. The parties discussed matters related to the forthcoming presidential election in the country. Representatives of the CIS observation mission described the principles of the mission's operation and the organization of its activity. It was stressed that the mission will stick to the laws of Turkmenistan and its activity will be based on the generally accepted principles and standards of international law in the organization of elections. The mission believes that the election is an internal affair of the state and the main objective of observers is to assess the election campaign on its compliance with the national legislation and provide assistance in holding free and democratic elections.
It is planned that the mission will comprise nearly 80 observers, including ten long-term observers.
