Harare, Feb 21 (IANS): The UN has urged Zimbabwe's political parties and other stakeholders to ensure general elections to be held later this year are peaceful.

Edward Kallon, the UN resident coordinator in Zimbabwe, made the remarks on Monday at the signing ceremony of $1.4 million from development partners to strengthen the capacity of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to hold the elections, Xinhua news agency reported.

"The UN is well aware of the concerns around the 2023 elections, notably the possibilities of violence; I really want to take this opportunity to endorse the calls that have been made from across the political spectrum in Zimbabwe for peaceful elections, and to reiterate the UN call on all member states to adhere to international obligations related to elections, and all parties and candidates to respect the process, its rules and mechanisms and to channel any disputes in a peaceful manner," Kallon said.

He expressed the hope that the ZEC will rise to the challenge and successfully organise the upcoming elections.