"text":"Southwestern Asia, between Turkey (to the west) and Azerbaijan; note - Armenia views itself as part of Europe; geopolitically, it can be classified as falling within Europe, the Middle East, or both"
"text":"most of the population is located in the northern half of the country; the capital of Yerevan is home to more than five times as many people as Gyumri, the second largest city in the country"
},
"Natural hazards":{
"text":"occasionally severe earthquakes; droughts"
},
"Geography - note":{
"text":"landlocked in the Lesser Caucasus Mountains; Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan) is the largest lake in this mountain range"
"text":"<br>Աշխարհի Փաստագիրք, Անփոխարինելի Աղբյւր Հիմնական Տեղեկատվւթյան. (Armenian)<br><br>The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information."
"text":"<p>Armenia’s population peaked at nearly 3.7 million in the late 1980s but has declined sharply since independence in 1991, to just over 3 million in 2021, largely as a result of its decreasing fertility rate, increasing death rate, and negative net emigration rate. The total fertility rate (the average number of children born per woman) first fell below the 2.1 replacement level in the late 1990s and has hovered around 1.6-1.65 for over 15 years. In an effort to increase the country’s birth rate, the government has expanded its child benefits, including a substantial increase in the lump sum payment for having a first and second child and a boost in the monthly payment to mothers of children under two. Reversing net negative migration, however, remains the biggest obstacle to stabilizing or increasing population growth. Emigration causes Armenia not only lose individuals but also the children they might have.</p> <p>The emigration of a significant number of working-age people combined with decreased fertility and increased life expectancy is causing the elderly share of Armenia’s population to grow. The growing elderly population will put increasing pressure on the government’s ability to fund the pension system, health care, and other services for seniors. Improving education, creating more jobs (particularly in the formal sector), promoting labor market participation, and increasing productivity would mitigate the financial impact of supporting a growing elderly population.</p> <p>Armenia has a long history of migration, some forced and some voluntary. Its large diaspora is diverse and dispersed around the world. Widely varying estimates suggest the Armenian diaspora may number anywhere from 5-9 million, easily outnumbering the number of Armenians living in Armenia. Armenians forged communities abroad from ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome to Russia and to the Americas, where they excelled as craftsmen, merchants, and in other occupations.</p> <p>Several waves of Armenian migration occurred in the 20th century. In the aftermath of the 1915 Armenian genocide, hundreds of thousands of survivors fled to communities in the Caucasus (including present day Armenia), Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Europe, and Russia and established new communities in Africa and the Americas. In the 1930s, the Soviets deported thousands of Armenians to Siberia and Central Asia. After World War II, the Soviets encouraged the Armenian diaspora in France, the Middle East, and Iran to return the Armenian homeland in order to encourage population growth after significant losses in the male workforce during the war.</p> Following Armenian independence in 1991, the economic downturn and high unemployment prompted hundreds of thousands of Armenians to seek better economic opportunities primarily in Russia but also in the US, former Soviet states, and Europe. In the early 1990s, hundreds of thousands of Armenians fled from Azerbaijan to Armenia because of the ongoing Nagorno-Karbakh conflict, but many of them then emigrated again, mainly to Russia and the US. When the economy became more stable in the late 1990s, permanent emigration slowed, but Armenians continued to seek temporary seasonal work in Russia. The remittances families receive from relatives working abroad is vital to Armenian households and the country’s economy."
"text":"most of the population is located in the northern half of the country; the capital of Yerevan is home to more than five times as many people as Gyumri, the second largest city in the country"
"text":"soil pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT; deforestation; pollution of Hrazdan 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"
},
"Environment - international agreements":{
"party to":{
"text":"Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands"
},
"signed, but not ratified":{
"text":"Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants"
}
},
"Climate":{
"text":"highland continental, hot summers, cold winters"
"text":"Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic, Armenian Republic"
},
"etymology":{
"text":"the etymology of the country's name remains obscure; according to tradition, the country is named after Hayk, the legendary patriarch of the Armenians and the great-great-grandson of Noah; Hayk's descendant, Aram, purportedly is the source of the name Armenia"
}
},
"Government type":{
"text":"parliamentary democracy; note - constitutional changes adopted in December 2015 transformed the government to a parliamentary system"
},
"Capital":{
"name":{
"text":"Yerevan"
},
"geographic coordinates":{
"text":"40 10 N, 44 30 E"
},
"time difference":{
"text":"UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)"
"text":"name likely derives from the ancient Urartian fortress of Erebuni established on the current site of Yerevan in 782 B.C. and whose impressive ruins still survive"
"text":"21 September 1991 (from the Soviet Union); notable earlier dates: 321 B.C. (Kingdom of Armenia established under the Orontid Dynasty), A.D. 884 (Armenian Kingdom reestablished under the Bagratid Dynasty); 1198 (Cilician Kingdom established); 28 May 1918 (Democratic Republic of Armenia declared)"
},
"National holiday":{
"text":"Independence Day, 21 September (1991)"
},
"Constitution":{
"history":{
"text":"previous 1915, 1978; latest adopted 5 July 1995"
"text":"<p>proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly; passage requires approval by the president, by the National Assembly, and by a referendum with at least 25% registered voter participation and more than 50% of votes; constitutional articles on the form of government and democratic procedures are not amendable; amended 2005, 2015, last in 2020; the Constitutional Reform Council formed in 2019 was dissolved in December 2021, and replaced by a new Constitutional Reform Council, whose members were officially appointed in late January 2022; the new council is expected to address the form of government, i.e. presidential or semi-presidential or parliamentary, and whether to merge the Court of Cassation with the Constitutional Court</p>"
"text":"Prime Minister Nikol PASHINYAN (since 10 September 2021); Deputy Prime Ministers Mher GRIGORYAN (since 3 August 2021) and Tigran KHACHATRYAN (since 19 December 2022); note - Prime Minister Nikol PASHINYAN resigned on 25 April 2021 in advance of the 20 June 2021 parliamentary election; he was reappointed by the president on 2 August 2021 and sworn in on 10 September 2021"
"text":"president indirectly elected by the National Assembly in 3 rounds if needed for a single 7-year term; election last held on 2-3 March 2022; prime minister indirectly elected by majority vote in 2 rounds if needed by the National Assembly"
"text":" <em><br>2022: </em>Vahagn KHACHATURYAN elected president in second round; note - Vahagn KHACHATURYAN ran unopposed and won the Assembly vote 71-0<em><br>2018:</em> Armen SARKISSIAN elected president in first round; note - Armen SARKISSIAN ran unopposed and won the Assembly vote 90-10"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> Nikol PASHINYAN was first elected prime minister on 8 May 2018 and reelected on January 2019; in response to a political crisis that followed Armenia's defeat in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in late 2020, PASHINYAN called an early legislative election for June 2021; his party won the election and PASHINYAN was elected to the prime ministership for a third time; his election was confirmed by the president on 2 August 2021, and he was sworn in on 10 September 2021"
"text":"unicameral National Assembly (Parliament) or Azgayin Zhoghov (minimum 101 seats, with additional seats allocated as necessary and generally changing with each parliamentary convocation; current - 107; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms; four mandates are reserved for national minorities; no more than 70% of the top membership of a party list can belong to the same sex; political parties must meet a 5% threshold and alliances a 7% threshold to win seats; at least three parties must be seated in the parliament)"
"text":"percent of vote by party - Civil Contract 53.9%, Armenia Alliance 21.0%, I Have Honour Alliance 5.2%; seats by party - Civil Contract 71 of 107 seats, Armenia Alliance 29, I Have Honour Alliance 7; composition (as of April 2023) - men 69, women 38, percent of women 35.5%"
"text":"Court of Cassation or Appeals Court (consists of the Criminal Chamber with a chairman and 5 judges and the Civil and Administrative Chamber with a chairman and 10 judges – with both civil and administrative specializations); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 judges)"
"text":"Court of Cassation judges nominated by the Supreme Judicial Council, a 10-member body of selected judges and legal scholars; judges appointed by the president; judges can serve until age 65; Constitutional Court judges - 4 appointed by the president, and 5 elected by the National Assembly; judges can serve until age 70"
},
"subordinate courts":{
"text":"criminal and civil appellate courts; administrative appellate court; first instance courts; specialized administrative and bankruptcy courts"
"text":"5165 National Conservative Movement Party [Karin TONOYAN]<br>Alliance of Democrats [Arman BABAJANYAN]<br>Armenia Alliance or HD [Robert KOCHARYAN]<br>(formerly known as the Armenian Revolutionary Federation)<br>Armenian National Congress or ANC [Levon TER-PETROSSIAN] (bloc of independent and opposition parties)<br>Bright Armenia [Edmon MARUKYAN]<br>Civil Contract or KP [Nikol PASHINYAN]<br>Country To Live In [Mane TANDILYAN]<br>Homeland of Armenians [Artak GALSTYAN]<br>Homeland Party [Artur VANETSYAN]<br>I Have Honor Alliance (formerly known as the Republican Party of Armenia, [Serzh SARGSIAN]<br>Liberal Party [Samvel BABAYAN]<br>National Democratic Party [Vahe GASPARYAN]<br>Prosperous Armenia or BHK [Gagik TSARUKYAN]<br>Republic Party (Hanrapetutyun Party) [Aram SARGSYAN]"
"text":"three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, and orange; the color red recalls the blood shed for liberty, blue the Armenian skies as well as hope, and orange the land and the courage of the workers who farm it"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"Mount Ararat, eagle, lion; national colors: red, blue, orange"
"text":"EEU-and CIS-member state but seeking more EU and US trade; business-friendly growth environments; stable monetary regime but vulnerable demand economy; key copper and gold exporter; persistent unemployment; large diaspora and remittances"
"text":"Armenia’s telecom sector was able to post in the mobile and broadband segments; its fixed-line penetration continues to slide downwards, with the rollout of fiber networks which have encouraged the increase in bundled services; the fixed broadband market remains undeveloped due to the lack of underlying infrastructure outside the main cities (2021)"
"text":"roughly 15 per 100 fixed-line and 129 per 100 mobile-cellular; reliable fixed-line and mobile-cellular services are available across Yerevan and in major cities and towns; mobile-cellular coverage available in most rural areas (2021)"
"text":"country code - 374; Yerevan is connected to the Caucasus Cable System fiber-optic cable through Georgia and Iran to Europe; additional international service is available by microwave radio relay and landline connections to the other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States, through the Moscow international switch, and by satellite to the rest of the world; satellite earth stations - 3 (2019)"
"text":"<p>Armenia’s government-run Public Television network operates alongside 100 privately owned TV stations that provide local to near nationwide coverage; three Russian TV companies are broadcast in Armenia under interstate agreements; subscription cable TV services are available in most regions; several major international broadcasters are available, including CNN; Armenian TV completed conversion from analog to digital broadcasting in late 2016; Public Radio of Armenia is a national, state-run broadcast network that operates alongside 18 privately owned radio stations</p> (2019)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control"
"text":"Armenian Republic Armed Forces: Armenian Army (includes land, air, air defense forces) (2023)",
"note":"<strong>note: </strong>the Police of the Republic of Armenia is responsible for internal security, while the National Security Service is responsible for national security, intelligence activities, and border control"
"text":"18-27 for voluntary/contract (men and women) or compulsory (men) military service; contract military service is 3-12 months or 3 or 5 years; conscripts serve 24 months; men under the age of 36, who have not previously served as contract servicemen and are registered in the reserve, as well as women, regardless of whether they are registered in the reserve can be enrolled in contractual military service; all citizens aged 27 to 50 are registered in the military reserve and may be called to serve if mobilization is declared (2023)",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> as of 2021, conscripts comprised about half of the military's active personnel; as of 2018, women made up about 13% of the active duty military; the Armenian Army established its first all-women combat unit in 2020"
"text":"since November 2020, Russia has deployed about 2,000 peacekeeping troops to the area in and around Nagorno-Karabakh as part of a cease-fire agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan; fighting erupted between the two countries over the Nagorno-Karabakh region in September of 2020; Nagorno-Karabakh lies within Azerbaijan but has been under control of ethnic Armenian forces (the \"Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army\") backed by Armenia since a separatist war there ended in 1994; six weeks of fighting resulted in about 6,500 deaths and ended after Armenia ceded swaths of Nagorno-Karabakh territory; tensions remained high into 2023, and both sides have accused the other of provocations since the fighting ended; Armenia has accused Azerbaijani forces of a series of border intrusions and of seizing pockets of territory<br><br>Armenia has been a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) since 1994 and contributes troops to CSTO's rapid reaction force (2023)"
"text":"<p>local border forces struggle to control the illegal transit of goods and people across the porous, undemarcated Armenian, Azerbaijani, and Georgian borders<br><br><em>Armenia-Azerbaijan:</em> The dispute over the break-away Nagorno-Karabakh region and the Armenian military occupation of surrounding lands in Azerbaijan remains the primary focus of regional instability. Residents have evacuated the former Soviet-era small ethnic enclaves in Armenia and Azerbaijan.<br><br><em>Armenia-Georgia:</em> Georgians restrict Armenian access into Samtse-Javakheti ethnic Armenian areas. Armenia has made no claims to the region.<br><br><em>Armenia-Iran:</em> None identified<br><br><em>Armenia-Turkey:</em> In 2009, Swiss mediators facilitated an accord reestablishing diplomatic ties between Armenia and Turkey, but neither side has ratified the agreement and the rapprochement effort has faltered, in part due to resistance from Azerbaijan. The border has been closed since 1993, and no diplomatic relations established after Armenian independence. In 2022, Turkey and Armenia have agreed to move forward with efforts to normalize relations.<br>Turkish authorities have complained that blasting from quarries in Armenia might be damaging the ruins of Ani, an ancient city on the high ridge overlooking the Arpaçay valley on the opposite shore.</p>"
"text":"<p>a transit country for illicit drugs with its location between source countries Afghanistan and Iran and the markets of Europe and Russia.</p> <p></p>"
