Armenpress

RUSSIA DECLINES ARMENIAN PROPOSAL

YEREVAN, AUGUST 23, ARMENPRESS: Gagik Mkrtchian, head of a trade and
economic development ministry department dealing with jewelry and goldsmith
industry, said Russian finance ministry has declined an Armenian proposal
asking for a permission to re-export fifteen percent of raw diamonds it
receives from Russia.
Mkrtchian said the Russian ministry cited various reasons to turn down
their proposal, one of which was that re-exported Armenia diamonds could
compete with Russian diamonds at foreign markets. Mkrtchian said Armenian
companies have received 150,000 carats of Russian raw diamonds out of
450,000 carts envisaged for Armenia for 2005 by an intergovernmental
agreement. However, he said, some small companies in Armenia are not now
able to buy Russian diamonds after Russian Alrosa, the main supplier of raw
diamonds, raised its prices.
“I think Russia would not like to lose a market that is able to process
annually 1 million carat of raw diamonds in a friendly country,’ he said.
Raw diamonds are also supplied to Armenia by Belgium and Israel.