MILLENNIUM CHALLENGES CORPORATION DID NOT STOP FINANCING PROGRAMS IN ARMENIA
ARKA
March 20, 2008
YEREVAN, March 21. /ARKA/. The Millennium Challenges Corporation did
not stop financing programs in Armenia, neither did it demand any
report on activities of the Millennium Challenges -Armenia Foundation,
Chief Executive Officer of the "Millennium Challenges -Armenia
Foundation" non-commercial organization Ara Hovsepyan told reporters.
Under the agreement signed on March 27 2006, the Millennium Challenges
Corporation pledged to extend $235.65 to Armenia in five years to be
used for implementation of programs for irrigation system and road
system improvement. Armenia received $11mln from Millennium Challenges
Corporation in 2007.
"No financial transfers were blocked. The money is transferred
quarterly and the April-June plan has already been approved. The
February-March funds were transferred with no difficulty," Hovsepyan
said.
The corporation-funded programs are being implemented according to the
schedule. The first contractors for improvement of 272-kilometre-long
rural roads have already been selected, Hovsepyan said.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stated in Congress on March 12
that the Bush administration insists on lift of state of emergency
imposed in Armenia following the clashes between law-enforcement
bodies and the opposition discontent with the results of February 19
presidential elections.
The Secretary of State stressed that Armenia is the largest recipient
of American assistance as per capita "in that part of the world"
and said the state of emergency told upon even some of the assistance
programs.
She said imposing state of emergency in Armenia made the USA stop
implementation of some programs.
>From February 20 to March 1, Armenia’s opposition political forces
led by ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosyan were holding rallies in
Liberty Square in Yerevan protesting against the results of February
19 presidential elections attributing victory to Prime Minister Serge
Sargssyan. As a result of public unrest and clashes between the rally
participants and the police, 131 people were injured, and eight were
killed. On March 1, RA President Robert Kocharyan issued a decree on
imposing a twenty-day state of emergency in the capital.