There are only five days left until the extraordinary elections in Azerbaijan. The election to be held on February 7 by the order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, is distinguished by its particular historical feature. It is no coincidence that these elections will also be organised in the Garabagh and Eastern Zangazur regions, which were liberated from the 30-year Armenian occupation.

At present, the processes leading to the elections are being watched with great interest. At the same time, special conditions have been created for every citizen of Azerbaijan to participate in elections both in the country and abroad.

Moreover, the processes related to the elections are being watched with interest by citizens of foreign countries. In this regard, Azernews learned the opinions of several foreign experts regarding the upcoming elections.

According to David Parry, a former BBC correspondent and British author, the extraordinary presidential elections to be held in independent and sovereign Azerbaijan are a complete reality today. He said with regret that the information about such an event in Azerbaijan in the British media today does not reflect the truth.

"It amazes me that honest news reporting appears increasingly rare on our British TV screens. Nowadays, the overtly theatrical device of employing a young, black interviewer as the obvious voice of objectivity when questioning Azerbaijani motives has become a ridiculous norm. However, the carefully scripted and overtly biased questions quickly reveal political manipulation behind the scenes for those with ears to hear. As such, my general reaction to these extraordinary presidential elections is directly opposed to that of the mainstream British media," he said.

Parry also called the upcoming elections the unity of the Azerbaijani people. He noted that despite the pro-Armenian and biased positions of some Western politicians, the elections in Azerbaijan are not only held democratically but also create ample conditions for ethnic Armenians to participate in the elections.

"Indeed, they seem to have been called because Azerbaijan is now united for the first time, having regained control over Garabagh and the seven surrounding regions, while Azerbaijanis (including those of Armenian ancestry) are eligible to vote. Each factor is an indication that Azerbaijan is taking an additional step towards Western-style democracy. This is a move that can only be applauded by any fair-minded person across the globe," the journalist added.

The journalist also touched on the biased and anti-Azerbaijani positions of politicians in Europe. He especially emphasised the biased position of PACE politicians against Azerbaijan and said that many of them coincide with the views of pro-Armenian France.

"For a number of reasons, ideological, historical, and otherwise, Western powers tend to be sceptical that the concept of democracy in contemporary Azerbaijan is the same as our own understanding of this complex term. Overall, this is a hypocritical position if one bears in mind the recent inhumane attitudes exhibited towards those living through the moral betrayal of Ukraine and the total catastrophe of Gaza by British and EU diplomats.

Anyway, after speaking with my colleague Neil Watson, it is increasingly clear that the Parliamentary Assembly for the Council of Europe (PACE) observers have not been invited to Azerbaijan because PACE has unarguably made anti-Azerbaijani statements. An unhelpful development possibly stirred by depressingly self-serving French interests. In all its meaning, Azerbaijan has now been suspended from the current PACE session, which further obscures notions of comparative democracy. Taken together, the Western powers need a little more heart as well as patience in their judgements of multilayered historical processes," he underlined.

The British journalist also evaluated the most worthy candidate to become president among the political rivals in Azerbaijan. For this, he characterised the important events of Azerbaijan in the last few years, from hosting global events to building an army, as well as its leadership in foreign policy.

"If I had a criticism of Azerbaijan, it would tend to revolve around its (occasionally) overarching focus on regional affairs at the expense of global events. What is more, I would be concerned about the fact that there is only one real candidate in the forthcoming elections due to his being the leader of Victorious Azerbaijan. Twin factors give a number of false impressions to those who do not really know Azerbaijan, as well as metaphorical ammunition to the enemies of this plucky Republic. Either way, I tend to see an evolving openness to other nations and topics on a planetary level over the last 5 years, along with a genuine sensitivity to differing ethnicities and their unique cultures. All of which bodes extremely well for the future," the expert added.