YEREVAN (A.W.)—The European Union (EU) praised the 2017 Armenian Parliamentary Elections in a statement released on April 3, calling the elections “well-administered” and said that fundamental freedoms were generally respected during the vote. They did, however say that the elections were “tainted” by credible information about vote-buying, and pressure on civil servants and employees of private companies.
The EU praised the 2017 Armenian Parliamentary Elections in a statement released on April 3, calling the elections ‘well-administered’ and said that fundamental freedoms were generally respected during the vote.
“[This] contributed to an overall lack of public confidence and trust in the elections. The election result nevertheless reflects the overall will of the Armenian people,” read a part of the statement released by the Spokesperson of the EU External Action Service.
The statement said that while an unprecedented number of international and domestic observers were provided an enabling environment in which to carry out their work, international non-governmental organizations were not invited to observe. This, they said, was in contradiction to the 1990 Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Copenhagen Document.
“The International Election Observation Mission (EOM) welcomed the introduction of new technologies, which the EU supported through a project successfully implemented alongside the Armenian authorities, as well as reforms of the legal framework. Despite some minor technical problems, fewer irregularities concerning ballot box stuffing, double voting, counting and tabulation of results were recorded by observers,” read a part of the statement.
In the statement, the UR reiterated its commitment to a stable, democratic, and prosperous future of Armenia.
“Once the electoral process has been completed, we look forward to working with the democratically elected new Parliament and Government to strengthen our political dialogue and continue our support to economic and social reform including on the basis of the recently initialed EU–Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement and within the larger framework of revised European Neighborhood Policy and the Eastern Partnership,” concluded the statement.