RUSSIAN LOAN TO ARMENIA IS NOT "CHARITY"

Golos Armenii
March 3 2009
Armenia

Russia’s 500m-dollar stabilization loan to Armenia is not charity.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan dismissed reports that Armenia is the
"poor cousin" in its relations with Moscow.

Russia’s objective is to "minimize risks for its capital" and the loan
will help improve the macroeconomic environment for 1,000 enterprises
with Russian capital in Armenia.

The loan is "not a charity to the poor Armenian people, but a mutually
beneficial transaction between partners."