On July 2, 2007, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Vartan Oskanian received the delegation of the Council of Europe Ago Monitoring group. The delegation was headed by Swedish ambassador to the Council of Europe, Per Sjogren. Also present were ambassadors from Austria, France, Germany, Russia, Romania, Latvia and officials from the Secretariat.

Noting the group’s regular visits to the region and the interaction with Armenian authorities, Minister Oskanian expressed his satisfaction with the effectiveness of ongoing cooperation with the Monitoring group which continues to bear the name of its first chairman, Ambassador Ago of Italy.

The issues discussed during the meeting included the latest developments in the Nagorno Karabakh peace process, the results of the parliamentary elections in Armenia and the reaction of the international community. They also discussed issues related to the organization of presidential elections in 2008.

The visiting ambassadors assessed the last parliamentary elections as a notable step forward and stressed the importance of further improvement of the elections process and the electoral code.

Talking about the freedom of press, the ambassadors paid special attention to the proposed changes in the law on television and radio which were under discussion in the parliament. The diplomats expressed concern that, if passed, the new law may limit Armenian citizens’ free access to information. After listening to Minister Oskanian’s clarifications, the ambassadors restated their appeal to the Armenian government to stay true to the spirit of the commitments that Armenia undertook in the framework of Council of Europe membership.

Minister Oskanian talked about the recent statements made by high-level Council of Europe officials and stressed the importance of exercising restraint while commenting on sensitive issues.