The active participation of the youth in the parliamentary elections in Armenia speaks of their faith in the future. Dmitriy Kobitskiy, Secretary General of the Council of the Interparliamentary Assembly (IPA) of Member Nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), on Monday stated this during a press conference in Yerevan, summing up the results of the CIS observation mission at Sunday’s National Assembly (parliament) elections in Armenia.

Kobitskiy reported that 43 observers were accredited from the CIS IPA, and 34 of them conducted short-term observation. They are parliamentarians, MPs, and senators from six CIS countries, as well as CIS IPA secretariat officials, employees, and experts.

A long-term monitoring of the legislation was also carried out and a conclusion was prepared, according to which the electoral law of Armenia generally complies with internationally accepted standards.

The CIS IPA representatives visited more than 100 polling stations, and highly assessed the organizational work of the elections, especially the technical side.

Dmitriy Kobitskiy noted that the Central Electoral Commission of Armenia had done everything possible to properly prepare its staff, and added that the high turnout of the youth testified to their confidence in the coming day.

At the same time, Kobitskiy pointed out the problems associated with voting for people with disabilities: many polling stations were not located on the first floor. In addition, Armenia lacks the opportunity to vote from home for those who cannot leave their homes due to health conditions, and it is unclear how these people can exercise their right to vote.

Dmitriy Kobitskiy described the atmosphere of the election campaign in Armenia as quite difficult. "There have been a large number of arrests, detentions, and mutual insults. This is the first time I have seen such a campaign in the Commonwealth of Independent States countries, although the [CIS] Interparliamentary Assembly has been observing the elections in our countries for more than 30 years, since 1994. We always strive to be not only objective, but also neutral towards the political processes taking place in our countries. However, in recent years, we have definitely not seen such an active and tense [election] campaign in any other country," Kobitskiy noted.

Also, he sincerely congratulated the Armenian people on the election and expressed hope that this election will bring prosperity, development and good relations to the country, at least within the CIS.