OSCE concerned about Armenia's rejection of Turkish observersMay 11, 2007 - 15:23 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Urdur Gunnarsdottir, Spokeswoman for the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights based in Warsaw, said her office was concerned about Armenia's rejection of Turkish observers for May 12 parliamentary election. "The fact of rejection proves insufficient transparency of the election. Armenia breaches an important OSCE principle. Inviting one observer implies inviting representatives from all of 55 OSCE member states," she said.When asked whether the OSCE can apply sanctions against Armenia, Ms. Gunnarsdottir said, "In such cases OSCE doesn't apply sanctions. The goal of our organization is to contribute to the vote and send observers. This is a political but not a juridical task. I can't say what kind of consequences Armenia can face but I can say for sure that OSCE won't apply any sanctions," Deutsche Welle reports. Armenian Foreign Ministry's Acting Spokesman Vladimir Karapetian said the rejection of Turkish observers is conditioned by the absence of diplomatic relations between Yerevan and Ankara. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Government reveals details from Pashinyan’s meeting in border village Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has met with a group of residents of a border village in Armenia’s northern Tavush province Narek Manasyan wins European Boxing Championships silver for Armenia Armenia’s Narek Manasyan (92kg) won Armenia’s second silver medal at the European Boxing Championships 2024 on April 28. Blinken urges Azerbaijan to continue negotiations with Armenia Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken has urged Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to continue negotiations with Armenia. Pashinyan, Blinken talk Armenia-U.S. ties over the phone Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a phone conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on April 28, Pashinyan’s office reports. |