On 30 June 2021 the Armenian Parliament adopted a new Criminal Procedure Code. The new criminal procedure legislation is a result of several years of complex legislative work of the Armenian authorities. The Council of Europe supported the preparation of the new Code with legal expertise. The Code incorporated most of the Council of Europe recommendations, delivered at the drafting stage.  

“The adoption of the new Code which enshrines the European human rights standards is a very welcome development”, stated Martina Schmidt, the Head of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan. “The new CPC provides for a balanced protection of public and private interests in criminal proceedings; the role of the court at the pre-trial stage of criminal proceedings has been strengthened; the role of defense lawyer in gathering evidence has expanded; the Code provides for better guarantees of the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of those involved in the criminal proceedings, based on the European human rights standards”, she added.

Along with the recently adopted new Criminal Code, the new criminal justice legislation should contribute to the progress in the execution of relevant judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in respect of Armenia.

The Council of Europe will continue providing expert and technical assistance to the Armenian authorities aimed at facilitating the implementation of the newly adopted legislation in line with European human rights standards.

This cooperation is one of the priorities the Action Plan of the Council of Europe for Armenia 2019-2022. The support to the drafting of the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes has been provided under the auspices of the joint Council of Europe and European Union programmes.