The world's economic competition agencies are not very popular, and that is why they need to cooperate with one another, Bruno Lasserre, President of the Authority of Competition of France, stated on March 19, in the Armenian capital Yerevan. Lasserre and Artak Shaboyan, Armenian State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition (ASCPEC) Chairman, signed a memorandum of understanding on the same day. "Bravo, Mr. Shaboyan! The legislative changes alone are insufficient for efficiency. There is a need to be bold," Bruno Lasserre said, reflecting on ASCPEC's activities. In his turn, Artak Shaboyan noted that the ASCPEC reached 200 decisions on liability in 2011 - as compared with the 100 decisions of the previous year - the fines increased several times, and none of the Commission's decisions were overturned by the courts. As per Shaboyan, the developing of ASCPEC's institutional capacity is likewise important. French Ambassador to Armenia, Henri Reynaud, noted that the encouragement of economic competition, "just like a vector, leads the other domains, too," and this, in its turn, will stimulate the activities of Armenian-French joint enterprise.

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