EU CONGRATULATED ARMENIANS

Panorama.am
13:33 23/02/2008

The European Union made an announcement on the Armenian presidential
elections scheduled on 19 February. According to the press and public
relations department of the Government, it is particularly written:

"The European Union congratulates the Armenian people for the conduct
of a competitive presidential election in Armenia. The European Union
notes the statement of preliminary findings and conclusions of the
International Election Observation Mission which concluded that the
presidential election in Armenia, an important test for democracy
in this country, was conducted mostly in line with OSCE and Council
of Europe commitments and standards. The European Union welcomes
the genuine efforts that were made to address the shortcomings in
previous elections.

However, the EU also notes that the report raised concerns about
the electoral process and that further improvements are necessary
to address the remaining challenges. It notes in particular that,
according to ODIHR, improvements and additional political will are
necessary to tackle concerns such as the lack of public confidence
in the electoral process, the absence of clear separation between
state and party functions and ensuring equal treatment of candidates.

The European Union looks forward to the final results of the
presidential election and calls on the competent authorities to
ensure that complaints are adequately investigated and shortcomings
addressed."