Wednesday, Government Sees Potential For Faster IT Growth In Armenia Armenia - Prime Minister Karen Karapetian speaks at the ArmTech 2017 forum in Yerevan, 27Sep2017. Prime Minister Karen Karapetian said on Wednesday that his government is ready to take "revolutionary" measures to help speed up the already rapid growth of Armenia's information technology (IT) sector. "We will consistently carry on with our policy of supporting the development of information technology and will deepen and expand our cooperation with local and transnational companies involved in this area," he told an annual international conference held in Yerevan. The Armenia tech industry has expanded by an average of over 20 percent annually in the past decade, making it the fastest-growing sector of the domestic economy. Its annual turnover is now equivalent to roughly 5 percent of Gross Domestic Product. "Right now we have serious competitive advantages both in the region and in comparison to other countries," declared Karapetian. He insisted that growth in the sector employing around 15,000 people could be even faster. In particular, he said, major tax breaks introduced by the previous Armenian cabinet two years ago should further accelerate the emergence of IT startups. In his words, 100 such firms were already set up last year. Armenia - Employees of the Yerevan office of the Zangi instant messaging operator, 4Aug2017. Although there are currently some 500 IT firms operating in Armenia, the sector is still dominated by the Armenian branches of U.S. tech giants like as Synopsys, National Instruments, Mentor Graphics and VMware. But its steady expansion is also increasingly driven by homegrown Armenian companies. Karapetian noted with satisfaction that more of them are switching from outsourcing to development of their own products and innovative solutions. "I want our local firms to be much more active and audacious seeing as we have declared that the government is prepared for any logical and, if necessary, even revolutionary solutions," he said in a speech at the ArmTech 2017 forum organized by the government. The premier added that the government is specifically ready to authorize the IT sector to manage computer science programs in Armenia's schools and universities. Industry executives have long complained about the inadequate professional level of many graduates of IT departments of Armenia universities. According to their estimates, there are now thousands of vacancies in the sector because of that. They say the continuing shortage of skilled personnel is the key challenge facing their companies. Earlier this year Karapetian met with a team of government officials and tech executives that proposed a wide-ranging reform of engineering education in Armenia. One of those executives said only half of 1,300 IT students graduating from Armenian universities each year are qualified enough to work in the sector without undergoing further training. Karabakh Armenians Hail Kurdish Independence Vote . Ruzanna Stepanian IRAQ -- Kurds celebrate during their independence referendum in Kirkuk, September 25, 2017 Nagorno-Karabakh's leadership on Wednesday welcomed the holding of a controversial referendum on independence in Iraq's Kurdistan region. By contrast, Armenia's government reacted cautiously to Monday's vote condemned by the Iraqi government as well as Turkey and Iran. A spokesman for the Armenian Foreign Ministry said only that Yerevan is "monitoring developments." The results of the referendum have not yet been announced. However, an overwhelming "yes" vote is widely expected. "We welcome the conduct of the referendum on independence in Iraqi Kurdistan an act of exercising peoples' right to self-determination # upheld by the UN Charter and other fundamental international documents," read a statement released by the Karabakh foreign ministry. "We hope that the situation that has emerged as a result of the referendum will be settled peacefully, based on the need for stability and security in the region," it added. Karabakh's predominantly ethnic Armenian population similarly voted to secede from Azerbaijan in a referendum held in 1991. The vote, which was followed by a bloody war, was not formally recognized by any country. Still, the United States, Russia and France seem to have recognized the Karabakh Armenians' right to self-determination in their peace proposals jointly made over the past decade. Armenia - Knyaz Hasanov, the leader of Armenia's Kurdish community speaks to RFE/RL in Yerevan, 27Sep2017. The referendum in Kurdistan was also hailed on Wednesday by Knyaz Hasanov, the leader of Armenia's small Kurdish community. Hasanov, who was elected to the Armenian parliament in April, made clear at the same time that he will not press the authorities in Yerevan to recognize the vote and its outcome. "Every state has its own interests and Armenia too has its own interests," he told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). "Armenia has a good rapport with Iran, which opposes Kurdistan's independence." "I'm not going to raise the issue of recognizing Kurdistan," Hasanov said. "It's up to the Armenian authorities, not me, to decide." Yerevan also maintains cordial relations with both the Iraqi central government and the Kurdish regional administration in northern Iraq. It formally decided in March to open an Armenian consulate general in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. In February, Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian held fresh talks with Massoud Barzani, the Iraqi Kurdish leader, on the sidelines of an international security conference in Germany. Germany - Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian (R) meets with Iraqi Kurdistan's President Massoud Barzani (L) in Munich, 17Feb2017. Armenia's trade with the Kurdish region and other parts of Iraq has grown considerably in recent years. Armenian exports to the Middle Eastern nation account for the bulk of bilateral trade which stood at $138 million last year. Incidentally, Iraq's Agriculture Minister Falah Hassan Zeidan Al-Lahibi visited Armenia this week to explore ways of deepening commercial ties between the two countries. He reportedly told Prime Minister Karen Karapetian on Wednesday that Bagdad would like to increase imports from Armenia. He singled out Armenian agricultural products and electricity Poland Offers More Defense Technology To Armenia . Sargis Harutyunyan Armenia - Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Bartosz Cichocki speaks to reporters in Yerevan, 27Sep2017. Poland is ready to significantly expand joint manufacturing of Polish-designed military equipment in Armenia, a senior Polish official said at the start of a visit to Yerevan on Wednesday. "I expect that defense cooperation will be one of the topics of our consultations today and tomorrow in Yerevan. We are ready to present our products and technologies," Deputy Foreign Minister Bartosz Cichocki told reporters ahead of his talks with Armenian officials. He indicated that the Polish government has already made corresponding proposals to Yerevan. Cichocki said Armenia could make greater use of Poland's "booming" defense industry for its own security needs. "We believe that development of the defense sector should not be based purely on import of Western or other technology and products but want to develop industries at home," he said. "We are ready to provide Armenia with technologies and [create] jobs here in Armenia and to share the same model of defense industry with Armenia, which is an important pillar of your economic development and security. I'm very much looking forward to discussing this," added the official. Armenia - A Polish defense industry official speaks at the inauguration of a Polish-Armenian joint venture in Charentsavan, 16Oct2014. A Polish defense company, Lubawa SA, and the Armenian Defense Ministry already set up a joint venture in 2013. Their plant located in the Armenian town of Charentsavan manufactures a range of protective gear such as army helmets, flak jackets, big and inflatable tents, camouflage netting and decoys for the Armenian military. Cichocki said Lubawa is ready to offer Armenia more defense "technologies and know-how." Asked what specific types of other military equipment this and other Polish firms could produce in Armenia, he said: "I believe that the government of Armenia is very well aware of our offer, and we expect to hear answers to the questions we have posed long ago." Cichocki and Polish diplomats accompanying him met with Defense Minister Vigen Sargsian later in the day. Sargsian was cited by his press office as telling them that he sees "no obstacles" to deepening relations between the Polish and Armenian defense ministries. No other details were reported. Parliament Panel Opposes Probe On Eurasian Union . Tatevik Lazarian Armenia - The parliament committee on foreign relations meets in Yerevan, 27Sep2017. A standing committee of the Armenian parliament rejected on Wednesday the opposition Yelk alliance's calls for a parliamentary inquiry into consequences of Armenia's membership in the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). Representatives of the pro-Western bloc proposed earlier this month the creation of the ad hoc commission after the pro-government majority in the National Assembly objected to its draft parliamentary declaration saying that the Armenian authorities must embark on a "process" of invalidating their accession treaty with the EEU. The proposed declaration says that EEU membership, effective from January 2015, has hurt the country's economy and security. Yelk's leaders decided to postpone parliamentary discussions on the document for now and focus instead on the idea of setting up the commission. One of them, Nikol Pashinian, made a case for an EEU-related inquiry at a meeting of the parliament committee on foreign relations. All but one members of the committee voted for a formal negative assessment of the Yelk proposal after a heated debate with Pashinian. They are affiliated with the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), its junior coalition partner, Dashnaktsutyun, and Gagik Tsarukian's bloc, which claims to be in opposition to the government. "We should be a bit more careful in dealing with this issue," said Ararat Zurabian, a deputy from the Tsarukian Bloc. Dashnaktsutyun's parliamentary leader, Armen Rustamian, objected to both the essence and timing of Yelk's initiative. He claimed that it could endanger the upcoming signing of a landmark agreement between Armenia and the European Union. Artashes Geghamian, a pro-Russian lawmaker representing the ruling HHK, claimed that Armenia would have endured the kind of armed conflicts and turmoil that are continuing in Ukraine had President Serzh Sarkisian not decided to join the EEU in September 2013. Sarkisian's decision scuttled an Association Agreement negotiated by Armenian and EU officials earlier in 2013. Pashinian seized upon to Geghamian's remarks as further proof that Armenia's membership in the EEU is the result of Russian "blackmail." Despite the negative verdict of the committee, Yelk is allowed by the National Assembly statutes to initiate a 90-minute debate on the issue on the parliament floor. Edmon Marukian, another Yelk leader, told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) that the bloc will force such a debate. Yelk holds 9 seats in the 105-member parliament. The three other political groups represented in the legislature oppose Armenia's exit from the EEU. Press Review "Zhamanak" reports that the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) will hold large-scale military exercises in Armenia next month. "It is hard to tell whether or not those exercises were planned [beforehand,]" the paper says. "But they seem to be announced for the first time." Also in October, the prime ministers of another Russian-led bloc, the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), will meet in Yerevan. The paper notes that Armenia will host these "Eurasian military and economic activities" ahead of the planned signing of its landmark agreement with the European Union. It speculates that Russia might use them to scuttle the deal at the last minute. "Zhoghovurd" says that starting next year many products imported to Armenia will no longer be exempt from the EEU's higher customs duties. "This means that a new wave of price hikes is expected in Armenia," writes the paper. "In particular, a number of basic goods will become more expensive: butter, sugar, coffee, meat and so on." It claims that the Armenian government has already pushed up the cost of these products to make the price hikes gradual and less noticeable. "Armenia's foreign debt has passed the $5 billion mark," writes "Hayots Ashkhar." "Although this is not the highest level of debt seen as permissible, possibilities of attracting new [financial] resources are dwindling amid current economic developments. This is the reason why steps have been taken of late to ease the foreign debt burden. In particular, the government is going to give up state guarantees for the implementation of some spending programs." "Haykakan Zhamanak" reports that a clinic in the southeastern Armenian town of Meghri, which was inaugurated last year, has stopped functioning due to a lack of medical personnel."Medics do not want to work in the remote town," explains the paper. (Tigran Avetisian) Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL Copyright (c) 2017 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc. 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org