YEREVAN. – Head of the EU Delegation to Armenia, Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin, is very impressed with all the efforts being made to promote judicial reform in the country. She said this in a conversation with reporters today, answering the question how she assesses the work of the Armenian government.
The envoy said she thinks the situation is really improving, but there are a number of reforms that need to be implemented. She said there would be no human rights unless there is a rule of law. Wiktorin said she has been in Armenia for four months now, she is very impressed with all the efforts made to promote judicial reform in the country, and that the EU will be an important partner in this process.
She said a Partnership Committee meeting was convened in Brussels in December, with both sides agreeing that they are making progress, but that does not mean they can stop and finish everything tomorrow. As per the EU envoy, all that requires time and continuous engagement, and the EU ambassador said she sees it from the Armenian government, and they can be sure that it exists between the EU. She added that she was very impressed by the government's efforts in reform, anticorruption strategy.
Asked what major obstacles Armenia needs to overcome in the path of democracy, the EU ambassador said that the political will is really important and it exists. She added that now they have to do it together, the international structures are ready to support in different areas, and now it is important to go step by step with the reforms.
Asked whether there are any elements observed on pressure on the media in Armenia, the ambassador said she thinks there is a great deal of media freedom in the country, but of course there will be pressing situations when there may be pressure on certain media, they see it in any country, and we cannot exclude it.
She added that today they are considering the possibility of working with the Armenian government on combating disinformation, too. Andrea Wiktorin said there is also a capacity-building issue, and they are looking at how they can help train journalists, as anyone can always improve.
