EU hails improved administration of electoral process in Armenia

PanARMENIAN.Net - Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Štefan Füle, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, made the following statement regarding the Feb 18 presidential election in Armenia:

“We have taken note of the preliminary results of the presidential elections held in Armenia on February 18, and welcome the statement of preliminary findings and conclusions of the International Election Observation Mission on the conduct of elections.

We welcome further progress made by the Armenian authorities in their efforts to hold these presidential elections in line with international standards, notably through improved administration of the electoral process, ensuring possibilities for candidates to campaign freely and better quality of the voter lists.

At the same time, we expect a number of outstanding concerns to be followed up appropriately in the future, including reported instances of partiality by public servants, claims of misuse of administrative resources, unclear interpretation of campaign financing provisions and cases of pressure on voters. We also encourage the Armenian authorities to undertake an inclusive and transparent process of amendments to the election-related legislation, in line with the OSCE/ODIHR's recommendations following the parliamentary elections of May 2012."