CONGRESSMAN HASTINGS URGES ARMENIA TO INVITE OSCE

UNCLAS YEREVAN 001994

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR EUR/CACEN-JDEHART AND KWITMER

E.O. 12958; N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL AM
SUBJECT: CONGRESSMAN HASTINGS URGES ARMENIA TO INVITE OSCE
OBSERVERS TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL REFERENDUM


Sensitive but unclassified, please treat accordingly.

SUMMARY
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1. (SBU) During a November 7-9 visit to Armenia, Rep. Alcee
Hastings, President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, made
a strong case to top Armenian officials to reconsider their
decision not to invite OSCE observers to monitor the
constitutional referendum scheduled for November 27. In a
series of meetings and in a press interview, Rep. Hastings
explained that an OSCE monitoring mission will lend
legitimacy to the referendum and stated that, even at this
late date, the OSCE should be able to send a small
monitoring team if it receives a formal invitation. All of
the parliamentarians and civil society leaders who met with
Hastings agreed that OSCE should be invited. FM Oskanian
defended the original GOAM decision in legalistic terms, as
Armenia's OSCE obligation to invite observers does not
technically extend to referenda. He agreed, however, that
the GOAM would reconsider the decision. Should efforts in
Yerevan, Vienna and Washington prove successful, OSCE's
ODIHR may need to be persuaded to send a team to Armenia at
this late date. End Summary.

Rep. Hastings Presses for OSCE Observers
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2. (SBU) Representative Alcee Hastings visited Armenia from
November 7-9 as part of an extended visit to Central Asia
and the South Caucasus. Together with other issues (covered
septel) Rep Hastings urged the GOAM to invite the OSCE ODIHR
to send an observer mission to monitor the November 27
constitutional referendum. Although the Congressman noted
that it is late to send an invitation, the OSCE should still
manage to send a small team of observers. Hastings
acknowledged that although Armenia is technically not
required to invite OSCE observers to referenda, as the
organization most qualified to judge elections, Armenia
should seek the legitimacy which a positive ODIHR assessment
would add to the ballot. He also stressed that the
observers would not simply criticize the referendum, but
would be useful to the GOA by identifying the areas in which
the voting system needs to be improved.

Parliamentarians Agree, but MFA has Decision Authority
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3. (SBU) Hastings was successful in convincing Parliament
Speaker Artur Baghdasarian and other leading MP's that
Armenia should have invited ODIHR observers. Baghdassarian
said he had sent the invitation to the Council of Europe to
observe the vote, but it was the MFA which had
responsibility for inviting OSCE. Baghdasarian agreed to
speak to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the issue
since the OSCE ODIHR is not Parliament's counterpart.

Oskanian Promises to Pursue the Issue
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4. (SBU) Minister of Foreign Affairs Vartan Oskanian claimed
that he does not think the GOA made an intentional decision
not to invite OSCE observers to the constitutional
referendum. Oskanian explained that the GOA did not receive
a letter requesting that it invite OSCE observers, and that
he has heard different information about whether the OSCE
even sends observers to referenda. In the end, however,
Oskanian agreed to reconsider the matter.

OSCE Office in Yerevan Hopes MFA Will Reconsider
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5. (SBU) Vladimir Pryakhin, Head of the OSCE Office in
Yerevan, stated that he hopes Congressman Hastings's visit
will persuade the GOAM to change its position. He disputed
Oskanian's assertion that there was no specific decision not
to invite OSCE as he was present during discussions when
Armenia's Permrep in Vienna rejected the idea of OSCE
observers.


6. Congressman Hastings has reviewed this telegram.

EVANS