BRUSSELS - The European Union is to send a 90-strong observer mission for Lebanon's parliamentary elections in May and June, the European Commission said Thursday.

The mission will be led by Spanish conservative Euro MP Ignacio Salafranca Sanchez-Neyra, a member of the foreign affairs commission in the European Parliament, it said.

Voting in the much-anticipated elections in Lebanon will be staggered across four days: May 29, June 5, 12 and 19, and follows the pullout of Syrian troops last month.

The commission said in a statement it welcomed "the prospect of holding genuinely democratic parliamentary elections, which are a means to reaffirm full sovereignty."

A core team of experts to be based in Beirut will arrive in the Lebanese capital shortly, it said.

Another 24 observers will be deployed in the provinces to monitor electoral preparations, campaigning, voting and the post-election period, while 50 short-term observers will arrive in the country closer to the first election day to observe polling and vote-tallying.

"The mission will assess the whole election process, including the legal framework, the political environment and campaign, electoral preparations, voting and counting as well as the post-election period," the commission said.

It will issue a preliminary statement shortly after the elections and later a final report, detailing its findings and offering recommendations for possible improvement.

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