A member of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Supreme Body, Eduard Sharmazanov, has accused U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Lynne Tracy of “double standards” for her remarks on democracy in Armenia.
In an interview to Armenpress on Wednesday, the ambassador said the U.S. “is committed to continue helping the Armenian people build a future based on shared democratic values, a path they chose in 2018 and to which they recommitted themselves during the 2021 parliamentary election.”
“The latest statement of the U.S. ambassador is nothing short of Pharisaism and use of double standards, which has no bearing on democratic values,” Sharmazanov told reporters at an opposition march in Yerevan on Thursday.
“For me, there are virtually no Western or European institutions or embassies that stand for democracy or human rights in Armenia," he said, accusing them of turning a blind eye to human rights abuses in country, including the Armenian authorities’ pressure on the judiciary and the use of excessive force against opposition demonstrators.
Sharmazanov claims such statements stem from geopolitical interests, adding no objective assessments should be expected from embassies and international organizations.
“They have remained silent amid the anti-democratic processes which have taken place in Armenia since 2018," he noted.