U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state visits Armenia

Published: Friday October 23, 2009

Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Tina S. Kaidanow in Yerevan. Mkhitar Khachatryan / Photolure.

Yerevan - Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Tina S. Kaidanow was in Armenia from October 19 to 21. Ambassador Kaidanow held discussions with President Serge Sargsyan, Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian, the ministers of foreign affairs and defense, and the Speaker of the National Assembly. She also met with representatives of civil society, including media representatives and experts on regional cooperation.

During her visit, Ms. Kaidanow met opposition politicians. In a meeting with former president Levon Ter-Petrosian, they discussed the current stage of Armenia-Turkey relations and the Karabakh peace process, RFE/RL reported.

According to a statement released by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), the deputy assistant secretary and U.S. Ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch also met with the leaders of the ARF. Aside from issues relating to the Armenia-Turkey protocols and the peaceful resolution of the Karabakh conflict, they discussed a wide range of social, economic, and democratic reforms.

According to the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan, Ms. Kaidanow addressed a wide range of issues in her conversations, including U.S. government support for the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations, and ongoing U.S. government programs to assist Armenia in the fields of economic development, human rights, and democracy.

The U.S. administration has been critical of the Armenian authorities' human rights records. After the February 2008 presidential elections and the 20-day suspension of civil liberties after the bloody clashes of March 1, Washington had suspended about one-third of a $235.6 million rural development grant under the Millennium Challenge Program. It made the suspension permanent after municipal elections this May.

The U.S. official stressed the importance of democratization efforts for Armenia's future and urged the government to take steps that will demonstrate Armenia's commitment to democratic progress. She also noted that the U.S. government is continuing to provide support for Armenia.