665th Meeting of the Permanent Council
The European Union was concerned to learn that eight Turkish short term observers were denied entry visas to Armenia, preventing them from joining the OSCE/ODIHR election observation mission ahead of the 12 May parliamentary elections.
We consider that such refusal is not in line with the 1990 Copenhagen document whereby OSCE participating States committed to invite observers from any other participating State. We note that the Director of the ODIHR has also expressed his concern, stating that "An invitation to observe elections is an invitation to all OSCE participating States, and is issued in order to ensure equal treatment and strengthen the diversity of observation.”
The EU calls upon Armenia to respect its OSCE commitments and grant visas to observers from all participating states.
The Candidate Countries Turkey, Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia, EFTA countries Iceland and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine and the Republic of Moldovaalign themselves with this statement.
* Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.
