Monday, March 8, 2021
Food Prices Keep Rising In Armenia
• Sargis Harutyunyan
Armenia -- A man looks at meat products at a food store in Yerevan.
Inflation in Armenia picked up pace last month due to a continuing increase in
key food prices, according to government data.
A monthly report released by the Armenian government’s Statistical Committee
shows that the prices of food products and nonalcoholic beverages in the country
were up by an average of 7.8 percent from February 2020. The year-on-year rise
in their average cost stood at 6.4 percent in January 2021.
The Statistical Committee again recorded particularly drastic increases in the
prices of imported key foodstuffs such as cooking oil and sugar. They were up by
more than 40 percent from January 2020.
The prices of bread and dairy products rose by more than 9 percent, said the
government agency. It also reported a roughly 10 percent surge in the cost of
fruits and vegetables mostly grown in Armenia.
Consequently, consumer price inflation in the country reached 5.3 percent in
February, according to the committee report, further surpassing a full-year
target of 4 percent set by the Armenian authorities for 2021.
In a bid to curb the higher-than-projected inflation, the Central Bank of
Armenia has twice raised its key interest rate since December 15. The bank’s
governor, Martin Galstian, expressed confidence last month that the authorities
will eventually meet their inflation target.
The rising cost of living is increasingly felt by ordinary Armenians who have
already been hit hard by severe socioeconomic consequences of the coronavirus
pandemic.
“If there is inflation and no economic growth in the country that’s not normal,”
one woman in Yerevan told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Monday.
“I’m saddened and hoping for a miracle that will put an end to this,” said
another citizen.
The surge in food prices was caused in part by a major depreciation of the
Armenian dram. The national currency has lost more than 7 percent of its nominal
value against the U.S. dollar in the past year.
The surge also reflects a global trend. In a recent report, the UN’s Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that world food prices rose in November to
the highest level in six years. It described the coronavirus pandemic as “an
important driver of the levels of global food insecurity.”
Ter-Petrosian Condemns ‘Calls For Military Coup’
Armenia - Opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian at his election campaign
headquarters in Yerevan, 2Apr2017.
Former President Levon Ter-Petrosian praised the Armenian military on Monday,
saying that it has ignored so far what he described as opposition calls for a
military coup in the country.
Ter-Petrosian called “totally understandable” the February 25 statement by the
military’s top brass demanding the Armenian government’s resignation. He said it
was provoked by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s “careless attempt” to blame the
armed forces for “his humiliating defeat” in last fall’s war with Azerbaijan.
“I welcome the military’s restrained behavior in the face of some forces’ calls
and efforts to drive it into unconstitutional actions,” Ter-Petrosian said in a
statement.
“At the same time, I consider extremely dangerous and condemnable irresponsible
statements by some politicians portraying military coup as a positive means for
making the state healthier and substantiating that [claim] with successful
experiences of some countries,” he said.
The 76-year-old ex-president stressed that, as a rule, military coups have had
disastrous consequences for countries around the world.
In their joint statement, the chief of the Armenian army’s General Staff, Onik
Gasparian, and 40 other high-ranking officers said Pashinian and his cabinet
must step down because they put the country “on the brink of collapse” after the
autumn war stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire on November 10.
Pashinian rejected the demand as a coup attempt and moved to fire Gasparian.
President Armen Sarkissian appears to have at least delayed the general’s
sacking. Sarkissian said last week that he will not sign a relevant presidential
decree drafted by the prime minister’s office.
The military’s demands have been strongly backed by the Homeland Salvation
Movement, an alliance of opposition parties campaigning for Pashinian’s
resignation. Senior members of the alliance have urged Gasparian to hold on to
his post in any case.
Some of them have also implicitly urged the military to overthrow Pashinian and
his cabinet, saying that the current authorities are not capable of dealing with
serious security challenges facing Armenia. The Homeland Salvation Movement has
not officially voiced such demands, though. It has demanded instead that
Sarkissian ask the Constitutional Court to rule on the legality of Gasparian’s
dismissal sought by Pashinian.
Sarkissian discussed the issue with a representative of the opposition alliance
on Sunday. The presidential press office gave no details of the meeting.
The alliance coordinator, Ishkhan Saghatelian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service
that the president again did not clarify whether he will appeal to the
Constitutional Court.
Armenian, Iranian FMs Again Discuss Regional Security
ARMENIA -- Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Aivazian (R) meets with his Iranian
counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in Yerevan, January 27, 2021
Foreign Ministers Ara Ayvazian of Armenia and Mohammad Javad Zarif of Iran had a
phone call over the weekend, reportedly discussing relations between the two
neighboring states and regional security.
According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, they “expressed their pleasure at the
growing trend of reciprocal ties in various fields and underlined the two
countries’ resolve to further develop cooperation in all areas.”
A statement released by the Armenian Foreign Ministry similarly cited Zarif and
Ayvazian as praising the Armenian-Iranian relationship “anchored in
centuries-old friendship” and reaffirming their governments’ intention to deepen
it.
“The interlocutors touched upon issues of regional security and stability,”
added the statement. “They both stressed the importance of coordinated
interaction in addressing new challenges facing the region.”
The Armenian ambassador to Iran, Artashes Tumanian, met on Monday with Mojtaba
Zolnour, the chairman of the Iranian parliament’s committee on national security
and foreign policy.
In a statement on the meeting, the Armenian Embassy in Tehran said Tumanian
discussed with Zolnour the situation and “possible developments” in the region
after last year’s war in Nagorno-Karabakh. It said they agreed that closer
bilateral ties are good not only for Armenia and Iran but also regional security.
Zarif reaffirmed Tehran’s desire to continue seeking closer relations with
Armenia after the Armenian-Azerbaijani war when he visited Yerevan in late
January as part of a tour of Russia, the South Caucasus and Turkey. The chief
Iranian diplomat also voiced strong support for Armenia’s territorial integrity,
calling it a “red line” for the Islamic Republic.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.