The European Union (EU) is not yet holding a conference on financial aid to Armenia, alluding to the fact that the May 6 parliamentary elections in Armenia did not quite meet the EU’s expectations.

So Brussels is now waiting for the 2013 presidential election in Armenia, Peter Stano, Spokesperson for Štefan Füle, Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy, told http://www.azatutyun.am.

Last December, Mr Stano stated that official Brussels was impressed by the Armenian authorities’ pledges to hold free and fair elections and was ready to hold an international conference on financial aid to Armenia.

The May parliamentary elections in Armenia were largely positive. However, some issues require settling. Armenia’s holding free and fair presidential election in 2013will make it clear when the conference will be held and what else the EU will be able to do assist Armenia in implementing all the programs on the agenda, Stano added.

At a similar conference in Paris, in 2001, international institutions allocated a total of US $620m to Armenia for poverty reduction.

Before the 2013presidential election Armenia has to rectify the omissions recorded during the May 6 parliamentary elections to be able to hold the presidential election in full conformity with international standards. Armenia also needs to step up efforts to reach an agreement on the basic principles of the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process proposed by the OSCE Minsk Group, intensify corruption control and strengthen the judicial system’s independence.