Armenpress

ARMENIA ALLOTS $200,000 IN ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS OF KATRINA HURRICANE

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian government approved on
Thursday $200,000 in assistance to victims of Hurricane Katrina. Deputy
foreign minister Arman Kirakossian said the money will be released from
government’s reserve fund and will be transferred on a special US government
bank account early next week.
Kirakosian said it will take the US government a long time to recover the
area hit by the disaster, adding also that the Armenian government is ready
to provide another assistance, should the US government ask for it. He said
Armenia had offered rescuers, doctors in the first days of the disaster. He
said though Armenia’s assistance is modest and symbolic in view of the
magnitude of damages assessed at around $100 billion, but ‘it is very
important for Armenia to demonstrate its solidarity with the people of USA,
because they were among the first nations to rush to help Armenians in the
aftermath of 1988 earthquake that destroyed northern parts of the country.”
He also recalled that Armenia has been one of the world’s leading
per-capita recipients of U.S. economic assistance that has totaled $1.6
billion since its independence. In a related development, Archbishop Khajag
Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church in the USA,
issued a new directive to local parish leaders on September 7, further
outlining relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina.
In the directive, the Primate asked local parishes to conduct two special
plate collections during services on September 11 and 18. Half of the money
raised will go towards relief efforts being conducted by Church World
Service and the other half will go directly to the Armenian Church of Baton
Rouge to be distributed to parishioners in the New Orleans area as needed.