U.S. made clear both the positive aspects of the changes since the last election but also the importance of the upcoming elections being free and fair, having a real competition in Armenia, said Eric Rubin, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.

Commenting on forthcoming elections, Rubin said things are much better than they were a year ago.

“I think every time there’s been an election in Armenia it’s been a time of heightened tension; it’s been a time, sometimes, of unrest in the streets, and even sometimes of violence.

Going into this election, we’re encouraged by what we see. We think the government is not just saying all the right things, but we believe is committed to an open, free and fair process and to a real contest in the elections. Obviously, the implementation of those commitments is the key question, not just the voicing of them. But given where we were a year ago, with real unrest in Yerevan and elsewhere in Armenia, and given what we’ve seen in the lead-up to other elections, we are encouraged,” he said addressing the participants of “South Caucasus 20 Years After  Independence” conference.

According to him, it’s something that’s at the front of the dialogue and at the top of every list when they meet with Armenian officials.

“I think there will be bumps; there always are in any country in an election campaign season. And obviously we’ll be watching this very closely and doing everything we can to offer support to both the government and to civil society and to help support the processes to the extent we can.

The other thing I would say about these elections is they are getting a lot of international attention, which again reflects the fact that these countries really are at the – if not always at the forefront of the world’s attention, certainly on the world’s agenda, in the world’s eye.

And I think that’s very positive actually, both reflecting their integration with the wider world but also the fact that people in United States and elsewhere across the world are concerned about where things are going.

And I hope that concern and that support and that view from outside will be helpful as they move toward elections,” he said.