Armenia
republicIndependence 28 May 1918 (First Armenian Republic)
Armenia as the 1994 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 119 fields, one of 34 editions from 1992 to 2025.
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Geography
Southwestern Asia, between Turkey and Azerbaijan
22 fieldsMap references
Africa, Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - European States, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
total area
29,800 sq km
land area
28,400 sq km
comparative area
slightly larger than Maryland
International disputes
- violent and longstanding dispute with Azerbaijan over ethnically Armenian exclave of Nagorno-Karabakh;
- traditional demands on former Armenian lands in Turkey have greatly subsided
Terrain
- high Armenian Plateau with mountains;
- little forest land;
- fast flowing rivers;
- good soil in Aras River valley
arable land
17%
permanent crops
3%
meadows and pastures
20%
forest and woodland
0%
other
60%
current issues
- soil pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT;
- energy blockade, the result of conflict with Azerbaijan, has led to deforestation as citizens scavenge for firewood;
- pollution of Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers;
- the draining of Lake Sevan, a result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens drinking water supplies;
- air pollution in Yerevan
natural hazards
occasionally severe earthquakes (25,000 people killed in major quake in 1988); subject to drought
international agreements
party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change
People
21 fieldsPer 1,000 population(1994 est.)
total population
72.07 years
male
68.65 years
female
75.65 years (1994 est.)
noun
Armenian(s)
adjective
Armenian
total population
100%
male
100%
female
100%
by occupation
industry and construction 34%, agriculture and forestry 31%, other 35% (1992)
Government
Republic
31 fieldsLegislature, 260 seatsone dot, one seat
conventional long form
Republic of Armenia
conventional short form
Armenia
local long form
Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun
local short form
Hayastan
former
Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic; Armenian Republic
chief of state
- President Levon Akopovich TER-PETROSYAN (since 16 October 1991), Vice President Gagik ARUTYUNYAN (since 16 October 1991);
- election last held 16 October 1991 (next to be held NA);
- results - Levon Akopovich TER-PETROSYAN 86%;
- radical nationalists about 7%;
- note - Levon Akopovich TER-PETROSYAN was elected Chairman of the Armenian Supreme Soviet 4 August 1990 before becoming president
head of government
Prime Minister Hrant BAGRATYAN (since 16 February 1993); First Deputy Prime Minister Vigen CHITECHYAN (since 16 February 1993)
cabinet
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president
Supreme Soviet
- elections last held 20 May 1990 (next to be held NA);
- results - percent of vote by party NA;
- seats - (260 total) non-aligned 125, ANM 52, DPA 23, Democratic Liberal Party 17, ARF 17, NDU 9, Christian Democratic Party 1, Constitutional Rights Union 1, UNSD 1, Republican Party 1, Nagorno-Karabakh representatives 13
Political parties and leaders
- Armenian National Movement (ANM), Ter-Husik LAZARYAN, chairman;
- National Democratic Union (NDU), David VARTANYAN, chairman;
- Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF, Dashnaktsutyun), Arutyun ALISTAKESYAN, chairman;
- Democratic Party of Armenia (DPA; Communist Party), Aram SARKISYAN, chairman;
- Christian Democratic Party, Azat ARSHAKYAN, chairman;
- Greens Party, Hakob SANASARIAN, chairman;
- Democratic Liberal Party, Rouben MIRZAKHANYAN, chairman;
- Republican Party, Ashot NAVARSARDYAN, chairman;
- Union for Self-Determination (UNSD), Paruir AIRIKYAN, chairman
Member of
BSEC, CCC, CIS, CSCE, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, NACC, NAM (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
chief of mission
Ambassador Rouben Robert SHUGARIAN
chancery
Suite 210, 1660 L Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
chief of mission
Ambassador Harry J. GILMORE
embassy
18 Gen Bagramian, Yerevan
mailing address
use embassy street address
Economy
26 fieldsOverview
Under the old central planning system, Armenia had built up a developed industrial sector, supplying machine building equipment, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics in exchange for raw materials and energy resources. Armenia is a large food importer and its mineral deposits (gold, bauxite) are small.
The economic decline in the past three years (1991-93) has been particularly severe due to the ongoing conflict over the Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan and Turkey have blockaded pipeline and railroad traffic to Armenia for its support of the Karabakh Armenians.
This has left Armenia with only sporadic deliveries of natural gas through unstable Georgia, while other fuel and raw materials are in critical short supply. Inflation, roughly 14% per month in the first nine months of 1993, surged even higher in the fourth quarter. In late 1993, most industrial enterprises were either shut down or operating at drastically reduced levels.
Only small quantities of food were available (mostly humanitarian aid), heat was nonexistent, and electricity strictly rationed. An economic recovery cannot be expected until the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is settled and until transportation through Georgia improves.
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $7.1 billion (1993 estimate from the UN International Comparison Program, as extended to 1991 and published in the World Bank's World Development Report 1993; and as extrapolated to 1993 using official Armenian statistics, which are very uncertain because of major economic changes since 1990)
revenues
$NA
expenditures
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
commodities
machinery and transport equipment, light industrial products, processed food items, alcoholic products (1991)
partners
NA
commodities
grain, other foods, fuel, other energy (1991)
partners
Russia, US, EC
capacity
2,875,000 kW
production
9 billion kWh
consumption per capita
2,585 kWh (1992)
Industries
- traditionally diverse, including (as a percent of output of former USSR) metalcutting machine tools (5.5%), forging-pressing machines (1.9%), electric motors (9%), tires (1.5%), knitted wear (4.4%), hosiery (3.0%), shoes (2.2%), silk fabric (0.8%), washing machines (2.0%), chemicals, trucks, watches, instruments, and microelectronics (1990);
- currently, much of industry is shut down
Agriculture
- accounts for about 45% of GDP;
- only 17% of land area is arable;
- employs 20%-30% of labor force as residents increasingly turn to subsistence agriculture;
- fruits (especially grapes) and vegetable farming, minor livestock sector;
- vineyards near Yerevan are famous for brandy and other liqueurs
Illicit drugs
illicit cultivator of cannabis mostly for domestic consumption; used as a transshipment point for illicit drugs to Western Europe
recipient
considerable humanitarian aid, mostly food and energy products, from US and EC; Russia has granted 60 billion rubles in technical credits
Communications
15 fieldstotal
11,300 km
paved
10,500 km
unpaved
earth 800 km (1990)
total
12
usable
10
with permanent-surface runways
6
with runways over 3,659 m
1
with runways 2,440-3,659 m
3
with runways 1,060-2,439 m
2
note
a C-130 can land on a 1,060-m airstrip
Telecommunications
- progress on installation of fiber optic cable and construction of facilities for mobile cellular phone service remains in the negotiation phase for joint venture agreement;
- Armenia has about 650,000 telephones;
- average telephone density is 17.7 per 100 persons;
- international connections to other former republics of the USSR are by landline or microwave and to other countries by satellite and by leased connection through the Moscow international gateway switch;
- broadcast stations - 100% of population receives Armenian and Russian TV programs;
- satellite earth station - INTELSAT
Defense Forces
Army, Air Force, National Guard, Security Forces (internal and border | troops)
4 fieldsManpower availability
- males age 15-49 862,921;
- fit for military service 690,113;
- reach military age (18) annually 28,458 (1994 est.)
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Armenia.” The World Factbook 1994. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/armenia/1994.