European observers say Armenian election meets international standards

Mediamax news agency
13 May 07

Yerevan, 13 May: The joint Observation Mission of ODIHR/OSCE, the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the OSCE
Parliamentary Assembly and the European Parliament said in Yerevan
today that the parliamentary election in Armenia to a considerable
degree corresponded to international standards.

As the special coordinator of the OSCE for the election in Armenia,
Vice-President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Tone Tinsgaard said
at a news conference in Yerevan today, compared to the previous
parliamentary elections there were positive changes registered. The
observers also registered some shortcomings, in particular, the slow
speed of vote-counting, he said. Nevertheless, the given shortcomings
were not substantial. "All this is good for the young Armenian
democracy," Tone Tinsgaard said.

The head of the delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe, Leo Platvoet, said that the election was a step
forward compared to the previous elections, which were criticized by
the international community. "The Council of Europe congratulates its
member on the progress made during the election," Leo Platvoet said.