MEMORANDUM ON COOPERATION SIGNED BETWEEN RA NA AND US AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Oct 13 2005

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 13, NOYAN TAPAN. A ceremony of signing a memorandum
on mutual understanding between the National Assembly of Armenia and
the US Agency for International Development (USAID) took place at the
“gilded hall” of the RA NA, on October 13. From the American party,
the memorandum was signed by Robin Phillips, the Director of the
USAID Armenia Mission, from the Armenian party by Artur Baghdasarian,
the Parliament Speaker.

“This is another good occasion to express our gratitude to US for
its consistent help and assistance to Armenia during the last 15
years,” Artur Baghdasarian stated during the short briefing wich took
place after signing the memorandum. According to him, signing of the
document will allow to raise the role of the parliamentary institute
in Armenia. The memorandum envisages implementation of a more than 2
mln US dollars program led to widening the RA NA international ties
as well as ones with the population of Armenia. This envisages the
NA staff’s, deputies’ re-training, technical assistance as well.

Answering the Noyan Tapan correspondent’s question, R.Phillips
mentioned that the program led to cooperation has started still in
2004 and will continue till 2007. The program envisaged by the present
memorandum is the continuation of another program with a value of 2
mln US dollars as well.

In his turn, Artur Baghdasarian mentioned that the program is a
rather effective one, and at present the sides start a new stage of
development of the cooperation. In the case of the constitutional
reforms’ being adopted by the November 27 referendum, this may
also have an important role in the issue of raising the role and
significance of the National Assembly what is envisaged by the
amendments.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress