Armenia: Reformist Prime Minister
RFE/RL reports that the new prime minister, Tigran Sargsyan, has met with Dick Cheney in Washington. Echoing the opinion expressed here from some diplomatic circles, Sargsyan’s appointment after February’s controversial presidential election is seen as somewhat positive. Others, however, are still waiting to see how long a prime minister interested in combating corruption to some extent and introducing much-needed reforms can last. Here’s hoping.
Sarkisian is apparently the first Armenian official to hold face-to-face talks with America’s powerful vice president. Cheney did not meet President Serzh Sarkisian when the latter visited Washington in October 2007 in his then capacity as prime minister.
President George W. Bush has shunned both Serzh Sarkisian and his predecessor, Robert Kocharian, because of the highly controversial ways in which they won Armenia’s last three presidential elections criticized by Western observers. Bush sent no congratulatory messages to Sarkisian after the last presidential ballot held in February.
The outgoing U.S. administration seems more sympathetic to Armenia’s reformist prime minister, having praised his stated efforts to combat corruption, ensure equal government treatment of all businesses and reform Armenia’s tax and customs services. “The prime minister is setting a good example as he takes on tough issues and is advancing a reform agenda,” U.S. Deputy Assistant Matthew Bryza told RFE/RL recently.
Photo: © Tigran Sargsyan, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008
, but T. Sargsyan wasn’t a part of the “elections” so it doesn’t really change anything about the U.S.’s position about S. Sargsyan’s presidency. Besides, this paragraph shows that the meeting wasn’t unusual:
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