ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
March 9, 2004 Tuesday
Russia, Armenia extend agreement on regulating voluntary migration
By Tigran Liloyan
YEREVAN, March 9
Russia and Armenia have extended an inter-governmental agreement on
regulating the process of voluntary resettlement by another five
years.
The relevant protocol was signed by Coordinator Minister Ovik
Abramyan and Russia’s Ambassador to Armenia Anatoly Drykov, in the
Armenian capital on Tuesday.
According to Dryukov, the agreement has proved its viability and
importance over the past few years. For his part, head of Armenia’s
Migration Department Gagik Yeganyan recalled that both states had
agreed to create favorable conditions for voluntary resettlement of
their citizens. It is particularly important at present, as Armenians
begin to return to their Motherland, Yeganyan emphasized.
The extension of such an agreement will encourage this process, he
added.
The Russian-Armenian voluntary migration agreement was signed on
August 29, 1997.
Yeganyan said an Armenian delegation would leave for Russia next
week. It will meet with ethnic Armenians in order to explain to them
terms of resettlement.
According to imprecise data, some 800,000 Armenians left the republic
after it proclaimed independence. They mostly settled in Russia.