Tag Archives: Armenia

Sargsyan skips EEU meeting

MARCH 13 2015 (The Bulletin) – Unnerving its three partners, Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan said he would skip a meeting of the Kremlin-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) in Astana on March 20, media reported.

His absence from the meeting has triggered questions about Armenia’s commitment to the project which it has only just joined.

The meeting between President Vladimir Putin of Russia, President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan and President Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus is billed as an important one to navigate out of the financial crisis.

It had been postponed from March 13 to March 20. Kazakh officials initially said Mr Putin was too unwell to attend.

But Armenia — the fourth member of the economic group — has chosen not to attend. Armenia only joined the EEU, which morphed out of the Customs Union, on Jan. 1.

It has always been considered a supporter of Russia which it relies upon for economic and military support.

Armenia’s government didn’t explain why Mr Sargsyan would not fly to Astana for the meeting. Instead a senior official said the meeting had been organised to sort out problems which did not concern Armenia.

Perhaps, but it has created noise around Armenia’s potential unhappiness around the state of the region’s finances so much so that the Kremlin was bounced into releasing a press statement which said that Mr Putin and Mr Sargsyan had shared a telephone conversation during which the Russian leader had been reassured of Armenia’s good intentions.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Putin to head to Astana summit

MARCH 18 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Russian President Vladimir Putin is heading to Central Asia for his first overseas trip since re-emerging into public view.

He is due to fly to Astana for a summit with his Kazakh and Belarusian counterparts on March 20.

The meeting was postponed from March 13. Kazakh officials at first said that the meeting had been delayed because Mr Putin was ill. Russian officials denied this, keeping people guessing on just why he cancelled several appointments and disappeared for a few days without explanation.

And Central Asia has played a prominent role in the episode. Mr Putin used a brief video with visiting Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev on March 16 to show the world that he was not hiding. He previous public appearance had been on March 5.

The summit with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has also stirred controversy, although this time not by Mr Putin.

It appeared to be a meeting of the heads of state of the Eurasian Economic Union members, except that the group’s newest member, Armenia, was missing.

This set off rumours that Armenia had grown increasingly disinterested in the Russia-led group since joining in January, especially given the context of the increasingly painful economic downturn.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has had to step in and reassure both Russia and the general public that this was not the case. Instead, he said, the meeting just didn’t include Armenia.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Carrefour opens store in Yerevan

MARCH 11 2015 (The Bulletin) – Carrefour, the French supermarket group, opened their first store in Armenia. The news is a boost to Armenia which has been hit hard by a financial downturn in the region. Carrefour said it had taken three years to open its new store in Yerevan.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Armenia plans bond issue

MARCH 12 2015 (The Bulletin) – Armenia is planning a bond issue to help it through the current financial crisis, Reuters reported quoting sources. Armenia’s last bond was issued in September 2013 and was worth $700m.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Air Armenia delays restarting services

MARCH 17 2015 (The Bulletin) – Air Armenia, Armenia’s only major passenger airline, has delayed re-starting services, media quoted head of marketing, Sirakan Hambardzumyan, as saying. Air Armenia’s suspended flights in October last year because of a cash flow problem. It had been due to resume flights in March.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Armenian opposition leader quits

MARCH 5 2015 (The Bulletin) – Gagik Tsarukian, head of the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party, resigned after a month-long row with Armenian president Serzh Sargsyan. Mr Sargsyan had denounced Mr Tsarukian as evil. The row had threatened to bring Armenian politics into disrepute.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 222, published on March 11 2015)

Clooney to present Armenian prize

MARCH 10 2015 (The Bulletin) – Armenia has lined up Hollywood superstar George Clooney to present the inaugural Aurora Prize in Yerevan on the 100th anniversary of the alleged genocide by Ottoman Turks of Armenians in eastern Turkey, media reported. Turkey denies genocide (March 10). Armenia is using the anniversary to bolster support for its cause worldwide.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 222, published on March 11 2015)

Iran says to open customs houses in Armenia

MARCH 10 2015 (The Bulletin) – Iran is planning on opening a customs house in Armenia to try and bolster trade between the two neighbours, media reported (March 10). Both Armenia and Iran are short of regional allies and need to develop relations.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 222, published on March 11 2015)

Remittances to Armenia fall by 40%

MARCH 9 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Remittances to Armenia, a vital part of its economy, were 40% lower in January 2015 compared to January 2015, media reported quoting the Central Bank.

Like other countries in the Central Asia/South Caucasus region, Armenia’s economy is partially reliant on workers in Russia sending back cash for their families back in Yerevan and other Armenian towns and villages.

But the Russian economy has dipped over the past 12 months because of Western imposed sanctions and a sharp drop in global energy prices.

This has had a large knock-on effect. Armenia’s economy is especially tied-in to Russia’s financial health.

The data shows Armenia’s dependency on Russia in more detail. Total remittances to Armenia were $72m in January, compared to $122 in the same period in 2013. Of this, the amount from Russia fell 56% to $38m from $87m in 2015.

Economists have been lining up to say that economic growth in Armenia this year will measure around zero, below even the government’s estimates of 2% growth.
The ARKA news agency quoted economist Vilen Khachatryan.

“Given the strong dependence of Armenia on the Russian market we expect the negative developments in Russia and our region will lead to a reduction in turnover and unemployment among Armenian labour migrants in Russia which will in turn affect Armenia’s economy,” he said.

“If Russia fails to get out of the current crisis, Armenia’s economic growth this year will be zero.”
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 222, published on March 11 2015)

Armenia accuses Azerbaijan of N-K breech

MARCH 2 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia accused Azerbaijan of shooting dead two of its soldiers around the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. There was no immediate Azerbaijani reaction to the accusation but it does appear to be an escalation. A 1994 cease-fire keeps a fragile peace around Nagorno-Karabakh.
-ENDS-

(News report from Issue No. 221, published on March 4 2015)