Deputy Chairman of the Senate Committee for External Affairs, Republican senator Richard Lugar started his visit to Azerbaijan on August 25, APA reports. During his visit, the American Senator will discuss "energy security of the transatlantic alliance", as well as issue of laying new pipelines, including the projected Nabucco gas pipeline.

The Investigation Department on Heinous Crimes of the General Public Prosecutor’s Office filed a criminal case on the blast occurring in Khatai District of Baku in compliance with articles 120 (willful homicide) and 228 (illegal purchase, transfer, sale, storage, conveyance or carrying of firearms, components details of them, ammunition, explosive substances and facilities) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan, Vugar Aliyev, the head of the press service of the Prosecutor General’s Office, told Trend News. Nobody has been arrested on this matter, he said.
On 22 August, blast took place at the electric transformer station behind School 138, located in Mazahir Rustamov Street 3.
Kamal Bayramov and Elmar Ismayilov, employees of Khatai District Department of Bakielektrikshabaka, died, as well as Jasur Mammadov, Parviz Seyidov and Ramil Gurbanov got different injuries in this incident.

The official Baku does not see any prospects of recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh beyond the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.
“The independence of Nagorno-Karabakh should be recognized only within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan,” Khazar Ibrahim, spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan said to media on 25 August.
The leadership of the self-declared ‘ Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’ intends to follow the example of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and to appeal Council of Federation of Russia to recognize its independence.

Central Election Commission (CEC), Venice Commission of the Council of Europe and International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) continued training for the employees of election constituencies responsible for applications and complaints on the theme “Rules of considering applications and complaints”, APA reports. 60 representatives of election constituencies attended the next stage of training. Secretary of Central Election Commission Natig Mammadov delivered a speech on the theme. Experts of the Council of Europe on complaints appeals and IFES expert Jonathan Bernstein briefed about the European experience of considering the appeals.

The International Fuel Quality Center (IFQC) has ranked the top 100 countries based on sulfur limits in diesel. Ranking is based on the order of the following criteria: sulfur levels in national standards, sulfur levels in local/regional standards (such as specifications for cities/states) and by year of implementation. Rankings were also influenced by market sulfur levels, applied based on available data. The IFQC found Sweden to be at the top of the ranking with the earliest implementation of the lowest sulfur limits. Following in second and third were Germany and Japan, respectively. The US placed 34th overall.
Sulfur is found naturally in crude oil; as a result, it passes into refined products such as transportation fuels when crude is processed at the refinery. When sulfur is emitted into the air as a result of fuel combustion, its compounds have negative environmental and health effects.

Germany will observe the presidential elections in Azerbaijan in line with the OSCE. “Germany, as a member of the OSCE, will send its observers in line with the OSCE,” the Ambassador of Germany to Azerbaijan, Pier Christopher Stanckin, told TrendNews on 25 August.
The Ambassador said that Germany does not plan to provide technical assistance in holding the presidential elections in Azerbaijan.
The candidates should gather more than 40,000 signatures within ten days to be registered by the CEC.
The CEC officially confirmed candidature of State Head Ilham Aliyev.

In connection with the presidential elections, polling stations will be established on oil platforms being located in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea and at ships, which will sail in the elections day, the Central Elections Commission (CEC) told Trend News on 23 August.
Polling stations will be established at ships and oil platforms, if the number of voters is more than 50, the CEC said. Poling stations will be organized at hospitals and rest homes. The relevant executive bodies and municipals will participate in establishment of these polling stations. At present definite work is being carried out in this regard.

The opposition Azerbaijan National Independence Party (ANIP) officially refused to join the co-operation format of the opposition parties boycotting the presidential elections. “The issue has been discussed at the leading structures of the party, where the ANIP’s participation in new co-operation organization was considered as unreasonable,” Ali Orujov, the deputy chairman of the ANIP, told Trend News on 22 August.
Azadlig bloc Board of Chairmen made a decision to establish a co-operation centre of the parties, which refused to join the presidential elections, at the meeting held last week. Fuad Mustafayev, the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan functionary, was authorized to negotiate on behalf of the bloc in this regard. The main principle of the co-operation is to accept and confirm the elections as illegitimate, Mustafayev said. “We will co-operate with the parties, which accept this principle,” he said.

Unification of the Azerbaijani opposition parties boycotting the presidential elections did not take place. “The first stage of negotiations is coming to end and the Azerbaijani National Independence Party (ANIP) and the Azerbaijani Democratic Party (ADP) have refused to participate in negotiations. Moreover, the Civil Solidarity Party and the Social Democratic Party were not involved in the talks,” Fuad Mustafayev, the deputy chairman of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), told Trend News on 25 August.