RUSSIA-ARMENIA TRADE INCREASES
By M. Alkhazashvili

The Messenger
Jan 23 2008
Georgia

Trade between Russia and Armenia increased 63 percent in 2007,
Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin said at the opening of a
business forum organized by the two countries in Yerevan on January
21, according to RIA Novosti.

He also said that Russia has invested USD 1 billion in Armenia’s
economy between 1991 and 2007.

With the Russian-Georgia border closed due to Moscow’s trade embargo
on Georgia, Armenian cargo currently reaches Russia via the Kavkaz-Poti
ferry route over the Black Sea.

The only legal customs point on the Russia-Georgia border, the Lars
crossing in Kazbegi, has been closed since 2006, ostensibly for
renovation works which are tentatively slated to last until this
year. No reopening has been confirmed.

Meanwhile, Russian Railways JSC won a tender for management rights
to Armenian Railways JSC earlier this month and is expected to invest
heavily to improve the country’s rail network.

This will pave the way for better transport links between the two
countries, Levitin says. "[It] will enable us to talk about the
existence of the regular connection between the two states," the
transport minister commented.

However, with presidential elections slated for February 19,
Armenia’s future foreign policy is unclear. Opposition candidate
Artur Bagdasaryan is emphasizing the country’s EU prospects in his
election campaign.

"I see Armenia’s future within the EU. This means that our foreign
policy should prioritize profound reforms in the country so that one
day Armenia can become a fully-fledged EU member," RIA Novosti quotes
him as saying.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress