Armenian ruling coalition urges PM`s resignation amid economic crisis
The four parties represented in Armenia`s governing
coalition have begun discussions on removing Prime Minister Tigran
Sarkisian from power, the influential local Aykakan Jamanak
newspaper reported.
The move is due to the ongoing devaluation of the national currency, the Dram, and comes on the heels of the country`s shrinking currency reserves, which has dealt a severe blow to the Armenian economy. The crisis has been exacerbated in the South Caucasus republic in the past weeks as domestic prices surged and a shortage of dollars occurred.
Aykakan Jamanak does not rule out that the premier will voluntarily tender his resignation shortly. The opposition insists that in normal countries the head of government steps down during such a predicament.
A number of CIS states` governments have floated their national currencies due to the ongoing financial crisis. The measure has led to a drop in the value of the Armenian currency.
Andranik Tevonian, a prominent Armenian economist, believes the abrupt decision by the country`s central bank to give up control over the currency rate was an erroneous step.
"The government`s resources to support currency exchange rates have completely run out. Therefore, the transition to the floating rate was inevitable. But it should have been done not abruptly, but on time and gradually," Tevonian said.
The Armenian National Congress, led by the opposition leader, former president Levon Ter-Petrosian, has said in a statement that the predicament had resulted from the central bank`s inept policies. Further, Ter-Petrosian charged that one of the key reasons of the dire economic situation was the concentration of funds, amounting to $800 million, injected into the Armenian economy in the past five months from foreign sources in the hands of certain oligarchs. The opposition warned that if the situation is not urgently addressed, Armenian citizens would face a humanitarian catastrophe and a social explosion would occur in the country.
However, Prime Minister Sarkisian insisted that the situation was under control and pledged to resolve the crisis in a matter of days. While admitting that the government has not encountered such situations in past years, he said the Dram`s devaluation and the ensuing developments had been actually been anticipated.
The surge in the dollar rate has also affected Armenia`s energy sector, with four leading companies operating in the field having announced they had faced problems after the currency rate was floated.
These developments could not but affect the work of the Armenian customs bodies and trading. Thus, the overly high exchange rate of the dollar has made imports unprofitable. This means that owners of goods at border checkpoints tend to return the commodities or transport them to other countries. The process is expected to assume an even wider scale in the coming days, worsening the food shortage in the country.
The move is due to the ongoing devaluation of the national currency, the Dram, and comes on the heels of the country`s shrinking currency reserves, which has dealt a severe blow to the Armenian economy. The crisis has been exacerbated in the South Caucasus republic in the past weeks as domestic prices surged and a shortage of dollars occurred.
Aykakan Jamanak does not rule out that the premier will voluntarily tender his resignation shortly. The opposition insists that in normal countries the head of government steps down during such a predicament.
A number of CIS states` governments have floated their national currencies due to the ongoing financial crisis. The measure has led to a drop in the value of the Armenian currency.
Andranik Tevonian, a prominent Armenian economist, believes the abrupt decision by the country`s central bank to give up control over the currency rate was an erroneous step.
"The government`s resources to support currency exchange rates have completely run out. Therefore, the transition to the floating rate was inevitable. But it should have been done not abruptly, but on time and gradually," Tevonian said.
The Armenian National Congress, led by the opposition leader, former president Levon Ter-Petrosian, has said in a statement that the predicament had resulted from the central bank`s inept policies. Further, Ter-Petrosian charged that one of the key reasons of the dire economic situation was the concentration of funds, amounting to $800 million, injected into the Armenian economy in the past five months from foreign sources in the hands of certain oligarchs. The opposition warned that if the situation is not urgently addressed, Armenian citizens would face a humanitarian catastrophe and a social explosion would occur in the country.
However, Prime Minister Sarkisian insisted that the situation was under control and pledged to resolve the crisis in a matter of days. While admitting that the government has not encountered such situations in past years, he said the Dram`s devaluation and the ensuing developments had been actually been anticipated.
The surge in the dollar rate has also affected Armenia`s energy sector, with four leading companies operating in the field having announced they had faced problems after the currency rate was floated.
These developments could not but affect the work of the Armenian customs bodies and trading. Thus, the overly high exchange rate of the dollar has made imports unprofitable. This means that owners of goods at border checkpoints tend to return the commodities or transport them to other countries. The process is expected to assume an even wider scale in the coming days, worsening the food shortage in the country.
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