Armenia

• Armenian Highland with mountains;
• little forest land;
• fast flowing rivers;
• good soil in Aras River valley

• soil pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT;
• the energy crisis of the 1990s led to deforestation when citizens scavenged for firewood;
• pollution of Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers;
• the draining of Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan), a result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens drinking water supplies;
• restart of Metsamor nuclear power plant in spite of its location in a seismically active zone

party to:

Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants

at birth:

1.16 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.133 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.876 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.665 male(s)/female

total population:

0.894 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

noun:

Armenian(s)

adjective:

Armenian

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

name:

Yerevan

geographic coordinates:

40 10 N, 44 30 E

time difference:

UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

chief of state:

President Robert KOCHARIAN (since 30 March 1998)

head of government:

Prime Minister Serzh SARGSYAN (since 4 April 2007)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister

elections:

• president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held 19 February and 5 March 2003 (next to be held in 2008);
• prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed with the majority support of the National Assembly;
• the prime minister and Council of Ministers must resign if the National Assembly refuses to accept their program

election results:

Robert KOCHARIAN reelected president; percent of vote - Robert KOCHARIAN 67.5%, Stepan DEMIRCHYAN 32.5%

chief of mission:

Ambassador Tatoul MARKARIAN

chancery:

2225 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 319-1976

FAX:

[1] (202) 319-2982

consulate(s) general:

Los Angeles

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Joseph PENNINGTON

embassy:

1 American Ave., Yerevan 0082

mailing address:

American Embassy Yerevan, US Department of State, 7020 Yerevan Place, Washington, DC 20521-7020

telephone:

[374](10) 464-700

FAX:

[374](10) 464-742

agriculture:

45%

industry:

25%

services:

30% (2002 est.)

lowest 10%:

1.6%

highest 10%:

41.3% (2004)

general assessment:

• system inadequate;
• an outdated telecommunications network inherited from the Soviet era;
• now 90% privately owned and undergoing modernization and expansion;
• mobile-cellular services monopoly terminated in late 2004 and a second provider began operations in mid-2005

domestic:

the majority of subscribers and the most modern equipment, including paging and mobile-cellular services, are in Yerevan

international:

• country code - 374;
• Yerevan is connected to the Trans-Asia-Europe fiber-optic cable through Iran;
• additional international service is available by microwave radio relay and landline connections to the other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and through the Moscow international switch and by satellite to the rest of the world;
• satellite earth stations - 3 (2007)

total:

839 km

broad gauge:

839 km 1.520-m gauge (828 km electrified)

note: some lines are out of service (2006)

total:

7,633 km

paved:

7,633 km (includes 1,561 km of expressways) (2003)

• 18-27 years of age for compulsory military service;
• 18 years of age for voluntary military service;
• 2-year conscript service obligation (2006)

males age 18-49:

722,836

females age 18-49:

795,084 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49:

551,938

females age 18-49:

656,493 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49:

31,774

females age 18-49:

31,182 (2005 est.)

• Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists in Nagorno-Karabakh and since the early 1990s, has militarily occupied 16% of Azerbaijan - Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) continues to mediate dispute;
• over 800,000 mostly ethnic Azerbaijanis were driven from the occupied lands and Armenia;
• about 230,000 ethnic Armenians were driven from their homes in Azerbaijan into Armenia;
• Azerbaijan seeks transit route through Armenia to connect to Naxcivan exclave;
• border with Turkey remains closed over Nagorno-Karabakh dispute;
• ethnic Armenian groups in Javakheti region of Georgia seek greater autonomy;
• Armenians continue to emigrate, primarily to Russia, seeking employment

refugees (country of origin):

219,324 (Azerbaijan)

IDPs:

8,400 (conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, majority have returned home since 1994 ceasefire) (2006)

current situation:

• Armenia is a major source and, to a lesser extent, a transit and destination country for women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation largely to the UAE and Turkey;
• traffickers, many of them women, route victims directly into Dubai or through Moscow;
• profits derived from the trafficking of Armenian victims reportedly have increased

tier rating:

Tier 2 Watch List - Armenia has failed to show evidence of increasing efforts, particularly in the areas of enforcement, trafficking-related corruption, and victim protection

• illicit cultivation of small amount of cannabis for domestic consumption;
• minor transit point for illicit drugs - mostly opium and hashish - moving from Southwest Asia to Russia and to a lesser extent the rest of Europe