10:41,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government expects 2 trillion 566 billion drams in tax revenues in 2024, Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan told Members of Parliament during a joint committee discussion on the 2024 budget draft.

“We expect tax revenues on the level of 2 trillion 566 billion drams,” he said.

 11:02,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. The potential of Armenia’s economic growth is assessed to be 5,5%, Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan has said.

“We usually assess Armenia’s economic potential to be 5,5%,” he said at a parliamentary committee hearing on the 2024 state budget when asked by MP Artur Khachatryan how much the growth would’ve been in the past five years if the external economic conditions are averaged.

“At this moment, the potential of Armenia’s economic growth is assessed to be 5,5%. The capital investments which we are carrying out depend on this potential. The size of that potential depends on the investments, the diversification of our economy and the reforms which we are implementing,” Hovhannisyan added.

He said that the main effort of the government should be directed at increasing this potential.

The government of Armenia earlier said it expects 7% economic growth in 2023. 7% is also the target for 2024.

 13:08,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. At its meeting today, the Board of the Central Bank of Armenia decided to reduce the refinancing rate by 0.25 pp, setting it at 9.5%, the Central Bank said in a press release.

The Lombard repo facility rate is set at 11.0 % and the Deposit facility rate is at 8.0 %.

 13:55,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. U.S. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has called out Piers Morgan and major news media for selective reporting and not covering Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing campaign against Nagorno-Karabakh and its actions against Armenia.

“How many hours of your show – or minutes or seconds – have you dedicated to what Azerbaijan has done to Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh… zero is probably the answer,” Ramaswamy told Piers Morgan in a heated interview.

He said that Ukraine and Azerbaijan have been successful in selling a ‘Pied Piper’ myth in the US. 

Ramaswamy said that what Azerbaijan did to Nagorno-Karabakh received ‘pin-drop silence’.

 14:40,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. The steel mill which was being built in Yeraskh will be moved to a new location, Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan has said.

He said that the Armenian-American steelworks is still under development but in another area nearby.

When asked where the construction site was being moved, Kerobyan said: ‘Nearby.’

He said that the decisions regarding the plant are made by the private companies investing in it.

“Given the geographical and regional environment, we are trying to be maximally useful to them,” Kerobyan said.

The construction of the steelworks began 6 months ago and was supposed to be completed by yearend.

Azerbaijan falsely accused Armenia of violating the provisions of the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context when the construction began. Afterwards, Azeri forces began intermittently shooting at the construction site, two workers.

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 15:10,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. The government plans to direct approximately 120 billion drams from the budget in 2024 to the improvement of Armenia’s road networks, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures Gnel Sanosyan told lawmakers Tuesday.

Most of the money, 103,8 billion, will be allocated for capital spending, Sanosyan said at a parliamentary committee hearing on the 2024 budget draft.

“In particular, we have major allocations in terms of the North-South Road project, 42,5 billion drams is envisaged for 2024. The Lanjik-Gyumri section is now under construction, where the main part of the work will be completed this year,” Sanosyan said.

One section of the Ashtarak-Talin road is now under construction and the construction of the other section will soon begin.

The construction of the 32km Agarak-Kajaran road section is also planned to start soon.

 15:22,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. Armenia conducted studies after 2020 on the possibility of building a railway in the Meghri section that would link Azerbaijan’s western regions with Nakhijevan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures Gnel Sanosyan has said.

“We’ve had the occasion to request the University of Architecture and Construction to conduct studies. We know the condition and the volume of work that has to be done, and the timeframes. We have a preliminary understanding what has to be done to restore that railway. But this all could take place if the political, diplomatic and other factors are resolved. When the issue comes to our field, then the blueprinting and construction processes will happen, about which we have a certain understanding and we are waiting,” Sanosyan said.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced after an EU-mediated meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in 2021 that an agreement was reached to restore the Yeraskh-Sadarak-Ordubad-Meghri-Horadiz railway. However, in 2023, PM Pashinyan said that this agreement was never implemented because just a week after reaching the agreement Azerbaijan refused to confirm it in a written format.

 15:40,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. The Dry Port and Industrial Estate project in Gyumri could get approved this year and enter the construction phase in 2024, the Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan Kerobyan has said.

He said that MTBS, a Dutch company, is currently carrying out a feasibility study of the project and the preliminary report shows sufficient demand to build the industrial estate.

The final report is expected by yearend. Then, the Public Investments Committee must hold another hearing to determine whether or not to continue the project.

Kerobyan said he finds it likely for the committee to greenlight the project.

The Dry Port and Industrial Estate project will likely be carried out by a public-private partnership model.

“We must try to involve a leading operator that will be able to perform a high-level management both in the industrial park and the logistics section,” Kerobyan added during a press briefing when asked by Armenpress on the project. 

“I think that in 2024 we will definitely pass the phases of preparing and implementing the tender. I think we can also hope that some construction works will commence in 2024,” he said.

Kerobyan said he has presented the project in various countries such as the UK, China, UAE and in different business forums. There is interest for the project from both the Gulf states and Southeast Asia.

 15:44,

SOFIA, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS/BTA.An international conference on "Cyber Threats and Solutions: Safeguarding Europe's Digital Landscape" was held here on Tuesday. Attending were leading experts, politicians, and representatives of specialized units in the field of cybersecurity in the EU. The forum was organized by the Center for the Study of Democracy and  Konrad Adenauer Foundation. 

Following are sound bites from the conference.

Deputy Interior Minister Stoyan Temelakiev: The risk of computer crimes is a threat to both the public and the private sectors. Reporting cybercrimes is the path to a safer digital environment. It is important to report such crimes; otherwise, the real threat level remains hidden from the competent bodies and the criminals might evade justice.

Jan Kralik, Programme Manager at the Council of Europe Cybercrime Division: Cybercrime is a threat not only to organizations and institutions but also to human rights and rule of law. It can erode the foundations of democracy, for example through interference in elections. It is important to report cybercrimes to the competent institutions because a large part of them remain unsolved due to not being reported by the victims. Cyberattacks have increased in frequency after the the start of the war in Ukraine, and they are a challenge on a world scale that require work across the globe, not just in Europe.

(This information is being published according to an agreement between Armenpress and BTA.) 

 15:51,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. Trade relations with Russia are important to Armenia but the Armenian government is also making effort to simultaneously diversify its economic relations in other directions, Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan has said.

He said that the increased customs inspection targeting Armenian brandy exporters by the Russian customs agency has been lifted. “That problem, which existed for a few days, doesn’t exist anymore,” he said when asked on the matter.

Some companies have been using the ferry option for exports and no obstructions have been recorded.

Kerobyan said there are no obstacles in the Armenia-Russia exports process.

“Trade relations with Russia are very important to us, and we are developing them. But we are also spending significant efforts, resources and time in order to diversify our foreign economic relations in other directions as well,” Kerobyan said.

Pointing out successes, the minister said that there’s been a tenfold increase in mutual trade with the UAE in the past 2-3 years, and turnover already exceeds 1 billion dollars. This volume will reach 2 billion dollars, Kerobyan said.

“We are very close to surpassing 1 billion dollars in bilateral trade turnover with Germany and the US, and the trade turnover with France is also significantly growing,” Kerobyan said.

The economy minister said that Armenia will participate in one of the largest international exhibitions in China in November this year and in the UAE in February 2024.

“Overall, we’ve significantly diversified our participation in regional exhibitions,” he said.