Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

Times.am, Armenia
Dec 24 2011

Trafficking: Armenian girls are sent mostly to Arabic United Emirates

According to the Armenian General Prosecutor’s office, special
department of studying crimes against humans, index of trafficking
does not show the real image of the problem as many cases are not
reported or announced. On the first level of the actions this crime is
well-covered and that is why it is difficult to discover them and much
time is needed.

Crimes made some years ago may be discovered now. The results of the
researches of noted department show this, For example, 17 cases of
2005-2009 years were discovered on 2010-2011. Only 4 cases of
trafficking held on 2011 were discovered during this year.

11 people are arrested for 7 criminal cases.

The researches show that most cases are registered in Arabic United
Emirates. The Republic of Armenia has agreement with this country but
almost no real legal assistance is gotten by them.

Armenian victims are also sent to Turkey and as there is no diplomatic
relations with this country it is nearly impossible to get information
from there.
Armenian Prosecutor’s Office published a research in details on
trafficking cases.

39 suffered people were discovered during 2010-11 and all of were
women. 5 people of them were 16-18 years old, 11 of them were 18-24, 7
of them were 25-29 years old and 16 of them were 30-49 years old. One
of these women had a job in Armenia and 38 of them were unemployment.
Most part of these women did not have high education. Only 2 people
were high-educated.
According to this index most part of the women were not married or
were divorced. Only three of them had husbands and one of them was
widow.
23 women were exploited in abroad and 16 of them were exploited in Armenia.

Trafficking is a modern slavery, when people are cheated and are
carried to a place where they are unable to get any assistance. Most
part of victims is women. They are forced to work for the organizers
of the crime and they get no money for it. Most part of women is
exploited sexually.

From: Baghdasarian

The Star Phoenix (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan)
December 23, 2011 Friday
Final Edition

Turkey cuts ties as France passes genocide bill

by John Irish And Ibon Villelabeitia, Reuters
PARIS

France moved on Thursday to make it illegal to deny the 1915 mass
killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks amounted to genocide, prompting
Ankara to cancel all economic, political and military meetings.

Lawmakers in France’s National Assembly – the lower house of
parliament – voted overwhelmingly in favour of a draft law outlawing
genocide denial, which will be debated next year in the Senate.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan described the bill put forward
by members of French President Ni-colas Sarkozy’s ruling party as
“politics based on racism, discrimination, xenophobia.”

He said Sarkozy, was sacrificing good ties “for the sake of political
calculations,” suggesting the president was trying to win the votes of
ethnic Armenians in France in an election next year.

Erdogan said Turkey was cancelling all economic, political and
military meetings with its NATO partner and said it would cancel
per-mission for French military planes to land, and warships to dock,
in Turkey.

French Foreign Affairs Minister Alain Juppe, speaking to journalists
after the vote, had urged Turkey not to overreact to the assembly
decision and called for “good sense and moderation.”

Juppe said Turkey had also recalled its ambassador from France, a
decision he regretted.

“What I hope now is that our Turkish friends do not overreact about
the French National Assembly decision. We have lots of things to work
on together,” Juppe said.

Armenia, backed by many historians and parliaments, says about 1.5
million Christian Armenians were killed in what is now eastern Turkey
during the First World War in a deliberate policy of genocide ordered
by the Ottoman government.

Successive Turkish governments and the vast majority of Turks feel the
charge of genocide is an insult to their nation. Ankara argues that
there was heavy loss of life on both sides during fighting in the
area.

“I don’t understand why France wants to censor my freedom of
expression,” Yildiz Hamza, president of the Montargis association that
represents 700 Turkish families in France, told Reuters outside the
National Assembly.

Earlier, about 3,000 French nationals of Turkish origin demonstrated
peacefully out-side the parliament ahead of the vote, which came 32
years to the day since a Turkish diplomat was assassinated by Armenian
militants in central Paris.

The authorities in Armenia’s capital, Yerevan, welcomed the vote. “By
adopting this bill, (France) reconfirmed that crimes against humanity
do not have a period of prescription and their denial must be
absolutely condemned,” Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian
said in a statement.

France passed a law recognizing the killing of Armenians as genocide
in 2001. The French lower house first passed a bill criminalizing the
denial of an Armenian genocide in 2006, but it was rejected by the
Senate in May this year.

The latest draft law was made more general to out-law the denial of
any genocide, partly in the hope of appeasing Turkey.

The proposed legislation could still face a long pas-sage into law,
though its backers want to see it completed before parliament is
suspended at the end of February ahead of elections in the second
quarter.

National Assembly speaker Bernard Accoyer said on Wednesday that he
doubted the bill would pass by the end of the current parliament, as
the government had not made the bill priority legislation.

From: Baghdasarian

Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
December 23, 2011 Friday

Turkey fumes as French lawmakers adopt genocide bill

Paris/Ankara, Muharram 27, 1433, Dec 22, 2011, SPA — Angered by
France’s National Assembly adoption of a bill making it a crime to
deny that Armenians suffered genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks
during World War, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan reacted
with a package of decisions, saying he was recalling Turkey’s
ambassador from Paris, French military planes could no longer flyover
Turkey, French naval ships could no longer dock in Turkish ports, and
all military, political, economic and educational exchanges, visits
and commission meetings were cancelled.

“We don’t have genocide in our history,” Erdogan told reporters in Ankara.

From: Baghdasarian

DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
December 23, 2011 Friday

BAKU ADOPTS DRONES

by Sokhbet Mamedov
Source: Nezavisimaya Gazeta, December 20, 2011, p. 6
[translated from Russian]

AZERBAIJAN SPENDS ON THE ARMY 200% MORE MONEY THAN ARMENIA AND GEORGIA
TAKEN TOGETHER; The parliament of Azerbaijan approved the state budget
of the country on a level of 17.972 billion manats (about $22 billion)
allocating 14.8% of this amount for defense needs. This means that
about $4 billion will be spent on the army. This is 1.9% more than in
2011.

The parliament of Azerbaijan approved the state budget of the country
on a level of 17.972 billion manats (about $22 billion) allocating
14.8% of this amount for defense needs. This means that about $4
billion will be spent on the army. This is 1.9% more than in 2011.

The gradual increase of the defense budget of Azerbaijan every year is
done proportionately to growth of the country’s GDP. According to the
regional review of economic development prospects of the IMF, whereas
in 2011 nominal GDP of Azerbaijan amounted to $68.5 billion in 2012 it
would approach $81 billion or would be 183$ bigger than the GDPs of
neighboring Armenia and Georgia taken together.

Commenting on the defense expenses that grow annually military expert
Uzeir Dzhafarov remarks that Baku has to take such measures to equip
its armed forces with modern military hardware and armament, to
develop the military industrial complex and to improve combat
capability of the national army. These expensive measures are aimed at
fulfillment of the main task for Azerbaijan, namely liberation of the
occupied territories by the military way in case of failure of
peaceful negotiations on resolving of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

It is necessary to say that special attention in the defense system of
the country is paid to the Ministry of Defense Industry established a
few years ago. In a short period of time it managed to buy advanced
technologies and to arrange production of modern hardware and armament
not only for needs of the national army but also for export to the
third countries.

For example, Baku bought a license from Russia and started series
production of automatic rifles AK-74M. According to military sources
of APA agency, automatic rifle named Hazri differs from the model made
in Russia by some technical characteristics. Unlike its counterparts
this weapon can be fitted out with night vision and laser homing
devices, illumination system etc.

According to the state defense order program, the Ministry of Defense
Industry planned to produce and to transfer to the Defense Ministry
5,000 automatic rifles of its own production this year.

As to the plans for 2012, according to Minister of Defense Industry
Yaver Dzhamalov, “it is planned to develop some big projects, for
example, construction of plants for production of barite, TNT,
hexogen, missiles and shells of artillery projectiles of different
calibers, assembling of antitank missile systems etc.”

Along with thins, in 2012 plants of the ministry will produce and will
transfer to the customer 60 unmanned aerial vehicles Aerostar and
Orbiter-2M. The national army will also receive 60 additional
mine-resistant transport vehicles of Matador and Marauder types.
Dzhamalov says that the relevant company of the ministry is currently
working on this project together with South African company Paramount
Group.

Source: Nezavisimaya Gazeta, December 20, 2011, p. 6

From: Baghdasarian

Agence France Presse
December 23, 2011 Friday 7:46 AM GMT

Iran’s Ahmadinejad visits neighbour Armenia

YEREVAN, Dec 23 2011

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad son Friday arrived in Armenia
for talks as the Islamic republic and its small Christian neighbour
seek to boost economic links.

Ahmadinejad met his counterpart Serzh Sarkisian and is due to sign
several bilateral agreements, the Armenian presidential administration
said, amid growing cooperation between Tehran and Yerevan.

One of the agreements will schedule the start of construction work on
a hydro-electric power station on the Arax river which runs along the
two countries’ border, the Armenian energy ministry said.

Suffering from long-term political disputes with two of its other
neighbours Turkey and Azerbaijan, which have led to an economic
blockade and closed borders, ex-Soviet Armenia has been developing
closer ties with Iran.

Trade turnover between Tehran and Yerevan has been increasing, from
$206 million (157 million euros) in 2009 to $273 million (209 million
euros) last year — a significant boost for impoverished Armenia’s
economy.

From: Baghdasarian

FRENCH VOTE STRAINS ALREADY TESTY FRENCH-TURKISH TIES

Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Dec 22 2011
Germany

Dec. 22–PARIS — Relations between France and Turkey were further
strained Thursday after French parliamentarians backed a bill that
makes it a crime to deny that Armenians suffered a genocide at the
hands of Ottoman Turks a century ago.

French parliamentarians from across the political spectrum defied
threats of diplomatic and economic sanctions in backing the bill that
punishes people who deny genocides by a year in prison and a fine of
45,000 euros.

France recognizes two events as genocides: The Nazi Holocaust of
Jews during World War II and the mass killings of Armenians in
Ottoman-controlled eastern Turkey during World War I.

The French already have a law punishing Holocaust denial.

Putting denial of the Armenian genocide into the same league has been
like a red rag to Turkey.

Turkey admits more than 300,000 Armenians perished between 1915
and 1918 but categorically rejects there was a genocide, saying
the killings were caused by unrest following the Soviet invasion of
eastern Turkey.

About two dozen countries have termed the killings genocide, but
Switzerland is the only known country to have prosecuted someone for
challenging the genocide label.

Turkey, which is still smarting over French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s
refusal to countenance Turkey joining the European Union, has accused
the French of stifling freedom of speech.

“France has trampled on the principles of its own revolution: Liberty,
equality and fraternity,” Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
said Thursday, announcing he was recalling the Turkish ambassador to
France and cancelling all military, political, economic and educational
exchanges among a raft of punitive measures.

Coming just as Franco-Turkish relations were enjoying a thaw, the
timing of the bill has raised questions about Sarkozy’s motives.

Turkey accuses Sarkozy of a political stunt.

France has a small but influential Armenian diaspora of about half a
million people, who are being wooed from all sides in the run-up to
next year’s presidential and parliamentary elections.

Some prominent members of the Franco-Armenian community include singer
Charles Aznavour, former football international Youri Djorkaeff and
Patrick Devedjian, an parliamentarian with Sarkozy’s ruling Union
for a Popular Movement (UMP).

Before becoming president in 2007, Sarkozy promised the Armenian
community he would push through legislation criminalizing genocide
denial.

But the opposition Socialists stole a march on the UMP by proposing
the first such bill, which was passed by the Assembly in 2006.

That bill was rejected by the Senate in May this year, when it was
still controlled by Sarkozy’s party.

In having his party put forward a new, slightly modified text, Sarkozy
“kept his promise” to Armenians, according to Devedjian.

But not everyone approved of Sarkozy’s gamble vis-a-vis France’s
third-biggest trading partner outside the EU.

Le Monde newspaper criticized the bill as setting back the clock
on months of efforts by the Foreign Ministry to improve relations
with Turkey.

“France could find itself offside in the eyes of a strategic Turkish
partner,” which was being “amply courted by the United States and
whose support is necessary to convince the Syrian regime to stop
massacring its opponents,” the paper said.

A Turkish embassy spokesman warned France against underestimating
Turkey. “The Turkey of 2011 is not the Turkey of 2001,” Engin Solakoglu
told dpa.

France’s European affairs minister, Jean Leonetti, was dismissive of
Turkey’s rumblings, calling them “empty threats.”

“France is convinced that it doesn’t risk much in provoking Turkey,”
Alican Tayla, a researcher with the Institute for International and
Stategic Relations in Paris, told dpa.

“A real lasting crisis would isolate Turkey more than France,”
Tayla predicted.

Erdogan took a different view. For the combative Turkish leader
the vote was “unfortunate for Turkey, but it is a bigger misfortune
for France.”

From: Baghdasarian

TURKEY CUTS SOME TIES WITH ‘RACIST’ FRANCE OVER GENOCIDE LAW

Agence France Presse
December 22, 2011 Thursday 9:59 PM GMT

Turkey reacted with fury Thursday to a vote by French lawmakers to
outlaw denial of the 1915 Armenian genocide, immediately cutting
military ties and warning of “irreparable damage” to relations.

“This is politics based on racism, discrimination and xenophobia,”
thundered Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, ordering home Ankara’s
ambassador to Paris and banning political visits between the two
NATO allies.

“From now on we are revising our relations with France,” he added.

“There was no genocide committed in our history. We do not accept
this.”

The French National Assembly had voted to approve a first reading of a
law that would ban anyone from denying that the killings of hundreds
of thousands of Armenians by Ottoman Turk forces during World War I
amount to genocide.

Turkey’s premier said the country will rule on a case-by-case basis
on any request made by France to use Turkish airspace or military
bases and will reject any French demand for its military vessels to
dock at Turkish ports.

Erdogan added that Turkey would boycott a joint economic committee
meeting in Paris in January, a move that will worry business leaders
in both countries, fearful for the fate of 12 billion euros in annual
trade between the two powers.

The United States quickly reacted urging the two NATO allies to
de-escalate the angry row.

“We obviously want to see good relations between France and Turkey,
we hope they can resolve differences between them, they’re both
stalwart NATO allies and partners,” said a US senior diplomat, on
condition of anonymity.

Erdogan also accused France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy of pandering to
domestic voters, hundreds of thousands of whom are of Armenian descent,
and warned that these measures were the first in an escalating scale
of sanctions.

“History and people will never forgive those exploiting historical
facts to achieve political ends,” he said, reflecting a view of
Sarkozy’s motives that is shared by many of his domestic critics.

Sarkozy’s government has insisted the law was a parliamentary idea,
but it was drafted by members of his UMP party and was passed in
the first of a series of votes by a small number of lawmakers in a
sparsely attended house.

In Paris, Foreign Minister Alain Juppe’s office issued a statement to
“express regret” over Erdogan’s decision and calling for dialogue.

“Turkey is an ally of France and a strategic partner,” Juppe said,
citing work done by the states in NATO and the G20 to address the
crisis in Syria, bring peace to Afghanistan and develop security in
the Mediterranean.

Supporters say that the law — which will impose a 45,000 euro fine
and a one-year jail term on genocide deniers — is an overdue measure
to protect the memory of one of the 20th century’s worst massacres.

But Turkey argues that Armenia’s estimate of 1.5 million dead is
exaggerated. It puts the death toll at about 500,000 and denies this
was genocide, ascribing the deaths to fighting and starvation during
World War I and accusing the Armenians of siding with Russian invaders.

The Turkish embassy in Paris said its ambassador had been recalled
and would leave Friday, while angry crowds in Ankara chanted: “We have
not committed genocide, we defended the homeland. Wait for us France,
we will come.”

The draft law will now be debated by the Senate and parliamentary
committees, and may be enacted early next year.

“We’re not trying to write history but to make an indispensable
political act,” Patrick Devedjian, a lawmaker of Armenian descent,
told parliament. “Now, Turkey is falling into revisionism and denies
its own history.”

France is home to around 500,000 citizens of Armenian descent and they
are seen as a key source of support for Sarkozy and the UMP ahead of
presidential and legislative elections in April and June next year.

The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) issued
a statement of concern about the French vote setting a precedent
and warned that the “criminalisation of debates on history’s true
course, even of obviously false and offensive statements about a
nation’s tragic moment, is not conducive to better understanding”
among people and states.

Franco-Turkish relations are often tense — Sarkozy is a firm opponent
of allowing Turkey to join the European Union — but 1,000 French
firms work there and trade between the two is worth 12 billion euros
per year.

Much of Europe, including France, is facing recession amid a sovereign
debt crisis, but Turkey enjoys growth rates in excess of eight percent
and, with 78 million people, it is a huge potential market.

From: Baghdasarian

IRAN’S AHMADINEJAD BOOSTS LINKS WITH ARMENIA

Africasia

Dec 23 2011

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a visit to Armenia on Friday
that saw the Islamic republic and its small Christian neighbour sign
a series of agreements to boost ties.

A joint statement by Ahmadinejad and his Armenian counterpart Serzh
Sarkisian said that the two politically isolated countries planned
to step up cooperation.

“The presidents expressed their determination to develop a friendly
and mutually beneficial bilateral relationship,” said the statement
issued by Sarkisian’s office.

Ex-Soviet Armenia has been seeking to increase links with Iran
because it is suffering from long-term political disputes with two
of its other neighbours, Turkey and Azerbaijan, which have led to an
economic blockade and closed borders.

The two states have found further common ground because Iran also has
a tense relationship with Armenia’s enemy Azerbaijan, which fought a
war with Yerevan in the 1990s over the disputed territory of Nagorny
Karabakh.

Tehran’s relationship with Baku is complicated by its huge ethnic
Azerbaijani minority and Azerbaijan’s close diplomatic and economic
links with the United States.

Ahmadinejad and Sarkisian’s statement also noted Yerevan’s support
for Tehran in the row over its controversial nuclear programme which
the West suspects of being an attempt to build atomic weapons but
Iran says is for peaceful energy generation.

“(The two presidents) noted the right of all countries, including
Armenia and Iran, to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes,”
the statement said.

The relationship between Tehran and Yerevan is developing because
both states are isolated by political disputes, said Sergey Minasian,
an analyst at the Caucasus Media Institute.

“For Armenia, which is under blockade by Azerbaijan and Turkey,
Iran is a way out to the world. And for Iran, Armenia is a country
through which it’s possible to go out to the West,” Minasian said.

The joint statement said that six agreements were signed during
Ahmadinejad’s visit including an energy cooperation deal and a
memorandum about Iranian development assistance to Armenia.

A timetable was also agreed for the joint construction of a
hydro-electric power station on the Arax river which runs along their
mutual border.

Trade turnover between Tehran and Yerevan has been increasing,
from $206 million (157 million euros) in 2009 to $273 million (209
million euros) last year — a significant boost for impoverished
Armenia’s economy.

From: Baghdasarian

TEHRAN DEVELOPS RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA IN ALL FIELDS: PRESIDENT

IRNA
December 23, 2011
YEREVAN

Yerevan, Dec 23, IRNA – Iran is determined to develop relations with
Armenia in all fields, visiting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
said on Friday.

He made the remarks in his meeting with Armenia Prime Minister Tigran
Sargsyan.

“Tehran and Yerevan have good ancient, cultural relations and the two
side relations in the past decades have been always constructive,”
Iranian president added.

Ahmadinejad stressed that the economic relations between Tehran and
Yerevan should expand to the highest level.

Armenian prime minister for his part, called for development of
relations between the two countries, adding that Iran is an important
regional power.

He asked for the rapid execution of bilateral agreements.

Iranian President had separate meeting with Armenian Parliament
Speaker Samvel Nikoyan during his one day visit to Yerevan.

Visiting Iranian president had also a meeting with Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan and discussed major topics concerning bilateral,
regional, and international issues.

Ahmadinejad and Sargsyan emphasized, in a joint statement published
on Friday, on the right of all nations to use peaceful nuclear energy.

The statement stressed that all nations should respect Nuclear
Non-proliferation Treaty and the international rules and regulations
on prohibition of spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Iran and Armenia singed five letters of understanding during the
official visit of Iranian delegation led by President Ahmadinejad to
Yerevan on Friday.

Tehran and Yerevan MoUs cover various fields of cooperation including
the construction of hydroelectric power plants on Aras dam, cooperation
between the Institute for Standards and Industrial Research of Iran and
the Armenian National Institute for Standards as well as cooperation
in the fields of social welfare, employment and environment protection.

President Ahmadinejad and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan on Friday
held first round of talks on major topics concerning bilateral,
regional, and international issues.

President Ahmadinejad’s visit to Armenia takes place upon an invitation
by Armenian President Sargsyan and in line with expansion of bilateral
ties between two countries.

Supply of oil products to Armenia and construction of railways are
among main topics of discussion during President Ahmadinejad’s one-day
visit to Yerevan.

Trade stood at dlrs 270 million in 2010 between the two countries. The
figure rose up to dlrs 300 million in 2011.

Over the past 20 years, energy sector has played an important role
in Iran-Armenia trade relations.

Relations between Armenia and the Islamic Republic of Iran remain
extremely cordial and both Armenia and Iran are strategic partners
in the region. Armenia and Iran enjoy cultural and historical ties
that go back thousands of years. There are no border disputes between
the two countries and the Christian Armenian minority in Iran enjoys
official recognition.

In July, 2007, a memorandum was signed on the start of feasibility
studies on the ideas of building an Armenian-Iranian railway and a
Russian-owned oil refinery that would process Iranian crude.

The Armenian government is building a second, bigger highway leading
to the Iranian border in the hope of boosting trade with Iran.

The two countries have reached a preliminary agreement to make joint
TV serials. The joint venture would portray the social and cultural
life of Iran and Armenia and expand cinematic ties between the two
countries.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN-IRANIAN YEAR-END MEETING

AZG DAILY
24-12-2011

Armenia-Iran Update: 2011-12-24 00:23:00 (GMT +04:00)

“All nations should respect Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty”

Iranian President Ahmadinejad leading a high ranking politico-economic
delegation paid a one-day official visit to Yerevan yesterday.

The Iranian President had separate meetings with Armenian Parliament
Speaker Samvel Nikoyan and Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan.

He had also a meeting with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan
and discussed major topics concerning bilateral, regional, and
international issues.

The two presidents emphasized, in a joint statement published on
Friday, on the right of all nations to use peaceful nuclear energy.

The statement stressed that all nations should respect Nuclear
Non-proliferation Treaty and the international rules and regulations
on prohibition of spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

What about the latest development in the Middle East and North Africa,
the statement stressed the importance of national unity amongst people
and asked regional governments to respect peoples’ demands.

“Iran nuclear issue should be resolved through diplomatic approach
and it has no solution other than diplomatic negotiation,” it said.

The joint statement of Ahmadinejad and Sargsyan continued that ”
Iran and Armenia are ready for cooperation in the battle against
organized crimes and international terrorism; Tehran and Yerevan are
determined to expand bilateral relations in various fields including
development of peace and security in the region.

It underscored the execution of all agreements between the two
countries in the near future.

“Karabakh dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan should be resolute
in peaceful ways based on International rules and regulations,”
the statement noted.

Iran and Armenia singed five letters of understanding during the
official visit of Iranian delegation led by President Ahmadinejad to
Yerevan on Friday.

Yerevan and Tehran MoUs cover various fields of cooperation including
the construction of hydroelectric power plants on Aras dam, cooperation
between the Institute for Standards and Industrial Research of Iran and
the Armenian National Institute for Standards as well as cooperation
in the fields of social welfare, employment and environment protection.

The Presidents on Friday held first round of talks on major topics
concerning bilateral, regional, and international issues.

President Ahmadinejad’s visit to Armenia takes place upon an invitation
by Armenian President Sargsyan and in line with expansion of bilateral
ties between two countries.

Supply of oil products to Armenia and construction of railways are
among main topics of discussion during the Iranian Presidnet’s one-day
visit to Yerevan.

Trade stood at USD 270 million in 2010 between the two countries. The
figure rose up to USD 300 million in 2011.

Over the past 20 years, energy sector has played an important role
in Iran-Armenia trade relations.

Relations between Armenia and the Islamic Republic of Iran remain
extremely cordial and both Armenia and Iran are strategic partners
in the region. Armenia and Iran enjoy cultural and historical ties
that go back thousands of years. There are no border disputes between
the two countries and the Christian Armenian minority in Iran enjoys
official recognition.

In July, 2007, a memorandum was signed on the start of feasibility
studies on the ideas of building an Armenian-Iranian railway and a
Russian-owned oil refinery that would process Iranian crude.

The Armenian government is building a second, bigger highway leading
to the Iranian border in the hope of boosting trade with Iran, IRNA
news reports.

The two countries have reached a preliminary agreement to make joint
TV serials. The joint venture would portray the social and cultural
life of Iran and Armenia and expand cinematic ties between the two
countries.

From: Baghdasarian