Pashinyan on democracy in Armenia
“Democracy for Armenia is a strategy, not a given born out of circumstances,” stated prime minister Nikol Pashinyan during the “Armenian Democratic Forum.” He assured that his government would continue its strategic course of democratizing the country.
In her speech, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Kristina Kvien highly praised the “democratic changes and reforms” that have taken place in Armenia in recent years. Representatives of civil society took the opportunity to ask the prime minister for his opinion on their proposal to hold a referendum on joining the European Union.
Pashinyan responded that he is aware of the people’s opinion. He reminded them that he stated in the European Parliament last year that Armenia is ready to be as close to the EU as the Union deems possible:
“If I thought the people of Armenia did not share this idea, I would not have made such a statement. The main problem with holding a referendum is that I don’t have an answer to the question of whether the EU is ready to accept us. If we hold a referendum, we must run a campaign. In such a case, people will ask us questions: ‘How, when, does the EU want this?’ People will ask if the EU is ready to accept us. I can’t answer that question because processes within the EU are happening that at least raise questions related to election outcomes. And we have already declared our political will at the highest level.”
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Forum: “An opportunity to discuss challenges” arising since the 2018 Revolution
As the Armenian prime minister stated, the forum is an excellent opportunity to talk about the progress of democratic reforms implemented in Armenia since the 2018 revolution and to discuss the challenges that have arisen. He emphasized that many changes have taken place in the country over the past 7-8 years:
“For example, expressions like ‘election fraud’ or ‘election result falsification’ have now become a thing of the past. If you talk to Armenian citizens about election result falsification today, they won’t understand what you’re referring to.”
According to Pashinyan, pressure on freedom of speech and the press are also “issues left in the past.”
After listing these achievements, the prime minister acknowledged that there is still work to be done in strengthening democracy. Specifically, he spoke about the “insufficiently politicized” local government elections, the inadmissibility of the use of force by law enforcement officers, and the need for more effective protection of human rights.
“The international community perceives Armenia as part of global democracy”
The prime minister considers it an achievement that the international community increasingly perceives Armenia as “part of global democracy.”
In his view, democracy enhances the state’s resilience to various challenges. He stated that it is thanks to democracy that Armenia has been able to survive quite difficult times and overcome many problems:
“If we were not a democratic country, I assure you, we would not have an independent state today. We must also acknowledge the following: what could be achieved through political will has already happened and concluded. Now, we need institutional solutions.“
U.S. Ambassador: “Despite difficulties, Armenia remains committed to democracy”
U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Kristina Kvien highly praised the support for democratic ideals in the country, especially highlighting prime minister Pashinyan’s role in the democratization of society. Kristina Kvien recalled the challenges Armenia has faced in recent years, such as military incidents at the border and the influx of over 100,000 refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh. The Ambassador values that, despite these challenges, Armenia remains committed to democratic values:
“The United States is proud to support Armenia in all this, as well as in the fields of energy, trade, and other areas.”
She also spoke about the U.S. intention to continue strategic dialogue with Armenia and transform it into a strategic partnership, which she believes will strengthen Armenia’s sovereignty.
“As Mr. Blinken said, democracy is the only effective tool for realizing human potential. Therefore, the U.S. supports Armenia in fighting corruption, implementing police reforms, and holding free and fair elections,” stated Kristina Kvien.
