IMF and WB reaffirm support for Turkish-Armenian border reopeningOctober 7, 2009 - 20:09 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have reaffirmed their strong support for the reopening of the Turkish-Armenian border, saying that its positive impact on Armenia's recession-hit economy could be felt as early as next year.Senior officials from the two multilateral US-led lending institutions welcomed economic implications of the unprecedented thaw in Turkish-Armenian relations which will result in the signing of key fence-mending agreements between Ankara and Yerevan later this week. Speaking to RFE/RL on the sidelines of the ongoing IMF and World Bank meetings in Istanbul, they said that growing signs of economic recovery around the world should also reflect positively on the economic situation in Armenia. According to the latest IMF projections presented during the global forum, the Armenian economy will grow by 1.2 percent next year after enduring one of the steepest declines in the world this year. The World Bank also expects renewed modest growth in the South Caucasus country in 2010. Ratna Sahay, deputy director of the IMF's Middle East and Central Asia Department, said the growth rate could well be higher if the Turkish-Armenian frontier is opened for commerce and travel soon. "Once the border opens up we think that the impact would be pretty quick because it would reduce Armenia's transportation costs tremendously," she said. "There would also be a lot of indirect impact through trade in goods and services with Turkey." Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | U.S. warns Georgia not to side with Moscow against the west Georgia has been warned by the U.S. not to become an adversary of the west by falling back in line with Moscow. Power of One Dram sums up two-year program with Teach for Armenia Idram Junior also joined the companies during the visit, bringing with it a fascinating intellectual game for children Moscow slams EU mission in Armenia for “provocative activity” The EU mission is doing more and more against Armenia’s neighbors Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran, Mikhail Galuzin said. Yerevan Mayor to travel to Paris on May 15-19 The official delegation headed by Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan will travel to Paris from May 15 to 19. |