Tag Archives: Armenia

Comment: Support rises for Armenia daredevil protesters, says Demytrie

OCT. 28 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — When Armenian gunmen calling themselves the Daredevils of Sassoun after a group of lionised 8th century freedom fighters seized a police compound in Yerevan in July, the world’s attention was focused on another story unfolding next door – an attempted coup in Turkey.

Yet what took place in Armenia was an unprecedented strike against the state. Veterans from a war in the 1990s between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, the so-called Daredevils held police officers and medics hostage for two weeks before surrendering to the authorities without a fight.

But, by then, thousands of Armenians had come out onto the streets to express their solidarity with the gunmen.

In the eyes of the authorities the gunmen were criminals, official media described them as terrorists. Three policemen died during the siege, afterall. But on the day of their surrender, supporters gathered outside the Opera House in central Yerevan chanting their names and calling them heroes.

One long-term South-Caucasus observer told me that what happened in July was the emergence of a new and radical form of anti-government protest, likely to be repeated in other post-Soviet oligarchies.

There was no single reason for the gunmen’s actions, instead they were driven by an aggregate of problems facing Armenian society.

Poverty, corruption, inequality, and the authorities’ inability to resolve the ongoing conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh Their actions prompted mixed feelings among Armenians. Some were outraged that the gunmen were using violence to achieve their goals. Others saw this aggressive action as necessary but poorly executed.

But many were inspired. Since their arrest, Daredevil supporters have been mythologising them, writing songs about their sacrifice for a noble cause – a more prosperous and free Armenia.

Since the siege and the protests, President Serzh Sargsyan has promised reforms, and a new PM and government has been ushered in. Few, though, believe deeply rooted social and economic problems can be solved so easily.

And the story of the Daredevils is not over. Once a trial date is set, their support base will become active again, demanding their release. That raises the prospect of another spell of street protests in Armenia.

By Rahyan Demytrie, a BBC correspondent in the South Caucasus

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 302, published on Oct. 28 2016)

Pobeda starts flights to Armenia

OCT. 26 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Pobeda, a low-cost subsidiary of Russia’s flagship carrier Aeroflot, confirmed it will start flights to Armenia in the next few weeks. From November, it will fly from Moscow Vnukovo to Gyumri, Armenia’s second airport seven times a week. Earlier this month, Pobeda obtained permission to start Rostov- on-Don to Yerevan flights. Pobeda already flies to Almaty, Baku and Tbilisi.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 302, published on Oct. 28 2016)

Armenia approves missile deal with Russia

OCT. 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s parliament approved a missile defence deal with Russia that will mean it relies increasingly heavily on the Kremlin for its defences, media reported. Russia already maintains a large military base in Armenia, seen as essential for keeping its various enemies (mainly Azerbaijan and Turkey) at arms length. Importantly, officials also said that the missile defence deal with Russia did not cover the region of Nagorno-Karabakh which Armenia disputes with Azerbaijan.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 301, published on Oct. 21 2016)

CSTO agree on crises centre in Armenian capital

OCT. 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – At a meeting in Yerevan, leaders of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) agreed to set up a new crisis response centre. The thinking behind the centre is to improve the exchange of information between CSTO members on terrorism. The CSTO includes Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 301, published on Oct. 21 2016)

Inflation picks up in Armenia

OCT. 10 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – After seven months of deflation, some prices in Armenia have started to rise, the Statistics Committee said. Food prices decreased marginally, but non-food items and the service sectors registered inflation of around 1%.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 300, published on Oct. 14 2016)

Gazprombank sells its Armenian subsidiary

OCT. 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Ardshinbank, one of Armenia’s top- three banks, bought Areximbank from Gazprombank, the financial arm of Russia’s giant gas company, for an undisclosed amount.

Areximbank was Armenia’s fifth- largest bank, according to local media and the buy-out will push Ardshinbank towards becoming the largest bank in Armenia. Its assets will grow by 20% to around 540b dram ($1.1b) after the deal. Karen Safaryan, a Russian billionaire businessman with Armenian roots, founded Ardshinbank in 2003 and remains its beneficial owner.

Analysts said that US sanctions against Gazprom and its subsidiaries and Armenian Central Bank requirements for commercial banks could be behind the buy-out.

In 2014, the Central Bank ordered banks to increase their minimum capital requirements by six times to 30b dram ($63m) by January 2017. The rule has prompted a round of mergers.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 300, published on Oct. 14 2016)

Armenia’s parliament approves new tax code

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – In a third and final reading, Armenia’s parliament approved a controversial new tax code that has been in the works for two years. The new code will reduce the income tax bracket for most of Armenia’s working population, liberalise VAT and tax dividends. Critics of the reform have said that the new tax code will push Armenia into a recession.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Comment: Regional economies begin to steady, writes Sorbello

OCT. 7 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Central Banks across Central Asia and the South Caucasus seem to have switched off their crisis mode, as inflation slows, oil prices pick up and remittances begin to regenerate.

Excited about the imminent re-start of the Kashagan offshore oil project, Kazakhstan is looking stronger, after months of uncertainty regarding its currency and its budget stability.

An important sign of the country’s recovering health was the rate cut by Kazakhstan’s Central Bank this week, which said that with inflation back into the 6 – 8% band that it was targeting and that monetary policy could be eased.

This decision has been in the Central Banker’s thinking over the past few weeks. That much is clear. Daniyar Akishev has been showing, for the first time, a more confident and determined tone.

And countries less impacted by oil prices, from Armenia to Kyrgyzstan, have also tried to boost their rather slow economic activity by lowering or keeping low interest rates in the past weeks.

All currencies from the region have been hit by a stronger US dollar over the past two years, and their depreciation led inevitably to a sharp increase in consumer prices.

Some — such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Georgia — needed strong monetary interventions. Others, such as Tajikistan, Armenia and Uzbekistan stabilised at a comparatively faster pace.

Last month, Russia’s Central Bank said migrant worker remittances to Kyrgyzstan had increased by 21%, reflecting a higher migration rate. On the other hand remittances to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan fell because of a drop in the number of migrants. Perhaps this is the Eurasian Economic Union effect?

Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are among the top remittance-dependent countries in the world.

As the ship seems steadier, however, countries across the region will have to cope with more domestic problems, chiefly in the banking sector and other private sectors hit hard by the economic downturn.

As shown this week with the bankruptcy of Bank Standard, Azerbaijan’s financial sector doesn’t seem to have fully recovered from the crisis. And in western Kazakhstan, where oil is the job creator, a month-long strike just ended with the workers obtaining higher salaries and the company winning state tenders. There is still work to do.

By Paolo Sorbello, Deputy editor, The Conway Bulletin

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Trade turnover improves in Armenia

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s Statistics Committee said that trade turnover improved during the first eight months of the year, compared to last year. Exports increased by 19% to $1.1b, while imports decreased by 2% to just below $2b, reducing the country’s trade deficit. Trade with CIS countries increased, while it remained flat with EU countries.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Armenia’s PM appoints new adviser

SEPT. 24 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s new PM Karen Karapetyan named Shushan Sardaryan, ex- press secretary of Gazprom Armenia, as an advisor. Previously, Mr Karapetyan served as the director of Gazprom Armenia, the Russian gas giant’s Armenian subsidiary.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)