Samantha Power: Armenia is “rare bright spot”

It is a place where citizens are trying to raise their voices to build a more representative, transparent, and responsive government, and they’re growing their economy by building productive trade relationships and connecting to their neighbors and to the broader world.

They’re diversifying partnerships. For Armenia to succeed in this effort it is important for the Armenian people, for all who actually believe in the power of democracy and commerce to shape a better future, and who want to see the democratic indicators and the economic indicators to go together.

Armenian people take on this work in a geopolitically fraught neighborhood, so to successfully face these challenges, Armenia needs the support and the partnership of friends and allies.

Increased funding 

Diplomatic convenings, like the trilateral meeting [with Armenian PM] that I and Secretary

Blinken, [European Commission] President Van der Leyen held in Brussels in April of this year, show the depth of the Biden administration’s commitment to showing up for Armenia.USAID has played an important role, mainly catalytic, but also trying to be responsive to needs as they arise. Over the last couple of years, we’ve increased our funding to Armenia by 75 percent since the Velvet Revolution. And we view ourselves as well as deal spotters and as enablers of other government agencies to come into Armenia and to know what the opportunities are.

Room for growth

When the country began serious reform efforts in 2018, the new Armenian government inherited a fairly difficult hand, entrenched corruption, repressed and biased media, and a government and economy mired in legacy bureaucracy and systems that slowed productivity. To address corruption, USAID is partnering with the Armenian government to strengthen its electoral code, improve election management, and revitalize anti-corruption efforts. We have seen progress. We know more is needed.

But in 2018, Transparency International ranked Armenia 105 in the world for transparent governance. Today, thanks to the hard work of reformers in and out of government, Armenia ranks 62. That is a jump of 43 places, and you’d be hard-pressed really to find a country that had jumped so far so quickly.

Between 2018 and today, Armenia jumped over 30 places in Freedom House’s ranking of civil liberties and political rights, from 132 to 97. That is a lot of progress, again, in a relatively short period of time. But there’s still, of course, room for growth.

Historic window of opportunity 

We will continue to support efforts to achieve a sustainable and lasting peace with Azerbaijan, a peace that will be fundamental to stability and prosperity in the South Caucasus and in the surrounding region over the long term. Armenia has a rare and historic window of opportunity to deliver for its people, and to demonstrate that open, transparent, citizen-centered governance can deliver a better future for its citizens.

If we continue to invest in Armenia’s success, then the country will be an inspiration to citizens around the world fighting for that kind of progress in their communities.