On 10 February, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) statement on the parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan. 

“We commend the positive points, including the comprehensiveness of the registration process of the candidates, good governance of the election process, transparency in the activity of the Central Election Commission, as well as the impossibility of holding elections in the 10 constituencies that are not or only partially under control of Azerbaijan due to the ongoing conflict with Armenia, which has led to the emergence of many IDPs, important steps taken in ensuring the rights of the IDPs, reflected in the statement of preliminary conclusions of the International Election Observation Mission. Although we do not agree with some of the points presented as shortcomings in the statement, we take note that they are mainly procedural and organizational matters. As it has been stated by the Chair of the Central Election Commission, the alleged and self-reported violations will be thoroughly investigated and all necessary measures within the framework of the law will be taken,“ read the statement.

The EU spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Peter Stano, also issued a statement in regard to the elections. “According to the OSCE/ODIHR’s preliminary assessment, despite a high number of candidates, the restrictive legislation and political environment prevented genuine competition in the elections. Some opposition parties boycotted the elections due to the restrictive environment, while some candidates were prevented from running by Azerbaijan’s failure to execute rulings of the European Court of Human Rights concerning violations of the right to free elections. Significant procedural violations during the counting of ballots and the tabulation, as highlighted by the OSCE/ODIHR, are of particular concern. The European Union regrets that long standing recommendations by OSCE/ODIHR and the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission still have to be addressed. The EU stands ready to assist in this process. The EU looks forward to continuing dialogue and working closely with Azerbaijani institutions, including the newly elected Parliament, for the benefit of all citizens,“ read the statement.

The US Embassy in Azerbaijan also responded following the ODIHR statement. “The United States shares the observations and concerns of the OSCE ODIHR monitoring mission that the 9 February parliamentary elections transpired in a restrictive legislative and political environment that prevented genuine competition. The elections were marked by limitations on the freedom of media and assembly. We were disappointed by significant procedural violations observed by ODIHR on Election Day, including ballot box stuffing, group voting, a disregard of reconciliation procedures, and limited transparency during vote counting. Azerbaijan has pledged to expeditiously investigate violations in the electoral process. It is clear from the ODIHR's report that many such violations have occurred.  Investigating these and implementing OSCE ODIHR’s previous and forthcoming recommendations will be critical for Azerbaijan to live up to its commitments as a participating State of the OSCE, but more importantly to the people of Azerbaijan,“ read the statement. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry considered ODIHR’s assessment of the elections to be biased. The spokesperson of the press service of the Russian Foreign Ministry said that according to observers from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the elections were held in accordance with the requirements of national legislation; no gross violation of citizens' voting rights were identified. “We regret that the observers from the ODIHR and the Parliamentary Assemblies of the OSCE and the Council of Europe expressed biased and subjective final assessments that did not correspond to the real picture.We congratulate our Azerbaijani friends on the successful holding of the elections, which testify to the support of the population by the Azerbaijani leadership’s reforms aimed at democratization and modernization of the country's social and political life,” read the statement.

On 9 February, parliamentary elections were held in Azerbaijan. A day after, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) made a joint statement on the regularity of elections in the country, stating that  “the restrictive legislation and political environment prevented genuine competition in Azerbaijan’s early parliamentary elections.“ (Caucasus Watch reported).