Armenia

Armenia (Armenian: 가교교, Hayastan), officially the Republic of Armenia (Armenian: Ԁɡԁ기, Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun), is a landlocked South Caucasus country located between Europe and Asia. It shares a border with Turkey to the west, Georgia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the south.

Armenia is a former Soviet republic and a unitary, multi-party, and democratizing state that has its roots in one of the world's oldest civilizations. Endowed with a rich cultural heritage, it stood out as the first nation to adopt Christianity as its official religion in the early years of the IV century (traditional date is 301). Although Armenia is a secular constitutional state, the Christian faith plays a central role in its history and in the identity of the Armenian people.

Culturally, historically, and politically, Armenia considers itself part of Europe. However, its location in the South Caucasus places it on a supposedly imaginary border between Europe and Asia: in reality it is a transcontinental country, halfway between the two geographic areas. These classifications are arbitrary, as there is no easily definable geographic difference between Asia and Europe.

Armenia is currently a member of more than 35 international organizations, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Asian Development Bank, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the World Trade Organization and the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization. It is one of the members of the Association for Peace of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (although the latter has the status of a collaborating country, not a full member), as well as of the military alliance Organization of the Collective Security Treaty (OTSC).). It is also an observer member of the Eurasian Economic Community, La Francophonie and the Non-Aligned Movement.

Armenian Etymology

Armenia is an exonym (in ancient Greek: Ἀρμενία), since in its own language the name Hayastan is used (Armenian script: манаманик: маманик) which is a combination of the Hayk ethnonym and the Persian suffix stan (: ستان stān); "country".

Hayastan

The origin and meaning of Hayk have been the subject of numerous hypotheses without any being conclusive. Some research derives it from an unattested form in Proto-Armenian: *hatiyos or *hatyos → *hayo → hay, related to Urartian𒆳𒄩𒀀𒋼 (^KURḫa-a-te, "the country of the Hittites"), so Hayk is a later form of Hatti (Hittite: 𒄩𒋾 /ḫa-ti /Ḫatti/).

An alternative hypothesis, considered by Diakonoff as unlikely, is the one that relates the lexeme hay- to the kingdom of Ḫayaša.

Armenian tradition, dating back to Moses of Corene in the V century, holds that it comes from the eponymous ancestor of the Armenians, Hayk (기기기) descendant of Aram (where the exonym Armenia would come from) or the son of Togarma, descendant of Jafet and Noah. Legend adds that Hayk lived in the 25th century BC. C. and that he settled on the shores of Lake Van after defeating and killing the Babylonian giant Belo. In the early 20th century, Armenian scholars searched for a historical origin for the legend; according to these studies, Aram could be a memory of Arame, the first known king of Urartu.

Armenian

Armenia appears in the Behistun inscription (VI century BC) as Armina (𐎠𐎼𐎷𐎡𐎴 a-r-mi-i-n(a) in Old Persian), Harminuya (in Elamite) and Urashtu (in Akkadian) and, soon after, as Αρμένιοι (Armenioi, i.e. Armenians) in a fragment attributed to Hecataeus of Miletus (c. 476 BC) and as Ἀρμενία (Armenian) in Herodotus.

Legend believed that the name was derived from the Biblical character Aram. From an academic point of view, the following etymologies have been considered: from the Proto-Indo-European root *ar- "gather in assembly", from the Assyrian place name Armânum or Armanî, attested as far back as the Bronze Age, from the expression ^ḪARMinni, "mountain of the Minni&# 34;, a people mentioned in the Bible (Jeremiah 51:27), identified with the Minnai of Assyrian inscriptions or else with the Urartian name Erimena, who appears in inscriptions as father of King Rusa III.

The author Rafael Ishkhanyan has supposed that Armenia comes from the name of a tribe belonging to the Hayasa-Azzi kingdom, but its existence has not been proven.

The native name of the country in Armenian is Hayk‘. This name was transformed during the Middle Ages into Hayastan, with the Persian suffix “-stan”, meaning country. The origin of the Armenian self-designation "hay" It is uncertain. It has traditionally been derived from Hayk (Ԁɡɐɐ), the legendary patriarch of the Armenians, who according to some contemporary historians, "has" comes from the country of Hayasa, mentioned in Hittite cuneiform writings from the XIV-XIII a. C. as one of the vassal states of him.

Several biblical exegetes have identified Armenia as the site of the Garden of Eden, and Mount Ararat has been interpreted as the mountain on which Noah's Ark landed after the global Flood (Genesis 8:4).

The origin of the exonym "Armenia" is also uncertain. Several Armenian scholars, including Rafael Ishjanjan (1989), have identified him with "Armani" (Armanum, also read Armanim) mentioned among the enemies defeated by the Akkadian king Naram-Sin (2300 BC), locating them in the mountains of southern Armenia. According to some historians, the first mention of the voice "Armina" it appears in the Behistun cuneiform inscription of King Darius I of Persia (ca. 519 BC). The Greek term Armenioi appears in Herodotus (Ἀρμένιοι δὲ κατά περ Φρύγες ἐσεσάχατο, ἐόντες Φρυγῶν ἐσεσάχατο, ἐόντες Φρυγῶν ἄποικο>), who were the colonists of Friarspangia. The traditional etymology for the ethnonym is its derivation from Aram, great-grandson of Hayk's great-grandson, as does Moses of Corene.

History

Prehistory and Antiquity

The kingdom of Urartu at the time of Sarduris II in 743 a. C.

Armenia has been populated since prehistoric times. Archaeologists continue to reveal evidence that Armenia and its mountains were among the first places where human civilization settled. From 4000 to 1000 B.C. C., copper, bronze and iron tools and utensils were produced in Armenia and commonly traded in neighboring lands where these metals were less abundant. The territory of Armenia is also one of the possible locations of the legendary country of Aratta, mentioned in Sumerian sources.

During the Bronze Age, various states prospered, including the Hittite Empire (at its peak), Mitani (historic southwestern Armenia), and Hayasa-Azzi (XV BC) and in the Iron Age, the Indo-Europeans Phrygians and Mushkis came and destroyed the kingdom of Mitanni; the Nairi people also flourished (centuries XII to IX a. C.) and the kingdom of Urartu (IX centuries to VI BC), but the contribution of each people to the ethnogenesis of the Armenian people is uncertain. Some would argue about a greater influence of Hurrians in early Armenia, but based on drastically diverse patterns in the language, most accept that Armenians belong to the Indo-European group of peoples while Urartu belongs to the Hurro-Urartian family. Yerevan, the modern capital of Armenia, was founded in 782 B.C. C. by King Argishti I of Urartu.

The kingdom of Armenia under Tigranes the Great.

In the VI century a. C., the satrapy of Armenia was established, as part of the Achaemenid Empire, which left the administration of the region in the hands of the Orontid dynasty. This satrapy existed until the IV century BCE. C., when Armenia became independent parallel to the fall of the Persian Empire.

After the defeat of the Seleucid Empire, one of the successor states to Alexander the Great's empire, at the Battle of Magnesia at the hands of the Roman Republic (190 BC), the governor of Armenia, Artashes, reestablished independence of Armenia —known as Greater Armenia— and founded the Artaxid dynasty, (190 BC), which lasted until the year 1 AD. At the same time, the kingdom of Sofene, to the southwest of the Armenian plateau, reestablished its independence under Zariadres. The area of Armenia Minor, to the northwest of the plateau, remained under the control of the kingdoms of Cappadocia and Pontus, and was later annexed to the Roman Empire.

The kingdom of Armenia reached its maximum expansion between 95 B.C. C. and 66 B.C. C. under Tigranes the Great, when it briefly became an empire, stretching from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean Sea and from the Caucasus to the border of Palestine.

Roman temple of Garni, built in the centuryId. C.

Throughout its history, the kingdom of Armenia enjoyed intermittent periods of independence and periods of autonomy under contemporary empires. Kings supported or imposed by the Roman Empire or by Parthia, or agreed upon by both, founded and destroyed dynasties, such as the Arsacid dynasty established from the year 53 by Tiridates I. The strategic location of Armenia between two continents has subjected it to successive invasions by Assyrians, Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Seljuk Turks, Mongols, Ottoman Turks, and Russians.

In the year 301, Armenia became the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as its official state religion, under the influence of Gregory I the Illuminator, who is today considered the patron saint of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Tiridates III (238-314) was the first ruler to officially Christianize his people, his conversion occurring twelve years before Christianity was granted official toleration by the Roman Empire under Constantine I and nearly eight decades before Theodosius I. the Great adopted Christianity as the official religion of the empire (380). In the year 405, Mesrob Mashtóts created the Armenian alphabet.

Persian Armenian

After the fall of the kingdom of Armenia in 428, most of the country was incorporated into the Sasanian Empire, ruled by a marzpan. After a rebellion in 451, the Armenians maintained their religious freedom, while Armenia gained autonomy and the right to be ruled by a native marzpan, while other imperial territories were ruled exclusively by Persians. The Marzpanate of Armenia lasted until 640, when Sasanian Persia was destroyed by the Arab Caliphate.

After the Arab conquest of Armenia, Armenia was initially grouped into an administrative unit under the name of Arminiyya, which also included parts of Georgia and Caucasian Albania and had its center in the Armenian city of Dvin, under an Arab governor, called vostikan. In the middle of the IX century the administration was delegated to the prince of Armenia, recognized by the caliph and the Byzantine emperor. The principality of Armenia lasted until the year 884, when the country regained its independence from the weakened Arab empire.

Medieval times

Cathedral of Echmiadzín.

The Armenian kingdom was ruled by the Bagratid dynasty until 1045, with its capital in the city of Ani. At the same time, several areas of Bagratid Armenia broke away forming kingdoms and feudal principalities, such as the principality of Vaspurakan, ruled by the house of Artzruni, but which at the same time recognized the supremacy of the Bagratid kings.

In 1045, the Byzantine Empire conquered Ani and ended the kingdom of Bagratid Armenia. Soon, the other Armenian states also fell under Byzantine control. Byzantine rule was brief, as the Seljuk Turks defeated the Byzantines in 1071 and conquered Armenia at the Battle of Manzikert, establishing the Seljuk Empire. To escape death or servitude at the hands of those who had murdered his relative Gagik II, King of Ani, an Armenian named Reuben entered the gorges of the Tauros Mountains with some compatriots. He then reached Tarsus, in Cilicia, where the Byzantine governor gave him protection, and where the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia would eventually be established.

The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, 1078-1375.

The Seljuk Empire soon began to collapse. In the early 1100s, Armenian princes of the Zakarida noble family established a semi-independent Armenian principality in northern and eastern Armenia, known as Zakarida Armenia. The Orbelian noble family shared control with the Zakarida in various parts of the country, especially in Vayots Dzor and Syunik. The southern parts of Armenia remained under the control of Kurdish dynasties of Shaddadids and Ayyubids.

Foreign occupation

In 1230 the Mongol Ilkhanate conquered the principality of Zakaryan, as well as the rest of Armenia. The Mongol invasions were soon followed by those of other Central Asian tribes, which continued from 1200 to 1400. After incessant invasions, Armenia weakened. In the year 1500, the Ottoman Empire and the Safavid Empire divided up the territory of Armenia. The Russian Empire later incorporated Eastern Armenia (consisting of the Yerevan and Karabakh Khanates within Persia) in 1813 and 1828.

Ottoman Armenia

Take from the fortress of Yerevan by Russian troops in 1827. Franz Roubaud (1893).

Armenia became an integral part of the Ottoman Empire with the reign of Selim II (1524-1574). However, the initial annexation begins as early as Mehmed II (15th century), who offered Ottoman backing to start the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople. This situation lasted for three hundred years, until the Russo-Turkish war of 1828-1829, when the eastern part of this territory was ceded to the Russian Empire. The remaining part, also known as Ottoman Armenia or Western Armenia, continued until the end of World War I and the partition of the Ottoman Empire. In the 1860s the Armenian National Liberation Movement arose.

World War I and the Armenian Genocide

As the empire began to collapse, the Young Turks overthrew the government of Sultan Hamid. Armenians living in the empire hoped that the Young Turk revolution would change their second-class status. However, with the impact of World War I and the Ottoman Empire's assault on the Russian Empire, the new government began to view the Armenians with suspicion and mistrust. This was due to the fact that the Russian army maintained a contingent of Armenian troops, made up of irregular Armenian units. On April 24, 1915, the Ottoman authorities arrested the Armenian intellectuals.

Victims of the Armenian Genocide in 1915.

With Tehcir's law, a large proportion of Armenians living in Anatolia were killed as a result of the Armenian Genocide. There was local Armenian resistance in the region, developed against the activities of the Ottoman Empire. The events of 1915 to 1917 are considered by Armenians and the vast majority of Western historians to be state-sponsored mass killings.^{[citation needed]}

Despite overwhelming evidence of the genocidal intent, Turkish authorities now maintain that the deaths were the result of civil war, along with famine and disease, including deaths on both sides. The vast majority of estimates of the number of Armenians killed start from 650,000 up to 1.5 million people and even as high as 2 million. Armenia and its diaspora have been campaigning for years for official recognition of these events as genocide. April 24 is commemorated as the day of the Armenian genocide.

Although the Russian army succeeded in occupying most of Armenia during World War I, its gains were lost with the Russian revolution of 1917. At that time, Armenia, Georgia, and the Russian-controlled part of Azerbaijan, they tried to join, forming the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. This federation, however, lasted only from February to May 1918, when the three parties decided to dissolve it. As a result, Eastern Armenia became independent as the Democratic Republic of Armenia (DRA) on May 28.

Wilson's Project for a New Armenia

Armenia Wilsoniana as promised during the division of the Ottoman Empire into the Sèvres Treaty.

With the partition of the Ottoman Empire, after being defeated in World War I, a projected Armenian state was created shortly after its independence in the Treaty of Sèvres signed by Turkey and some of the World War I allies, on August 10, 1920, which left the delimitation of the border in the hands of US President Woodrow Wilson. The final treaty, however, was not signed by the United States, and although accepted by the Ottoman Empire, it was rejected by the Turks, leading to a new war.

The draft state incorporated the provinces of Erzurum, Bitlis and Van, which were parts of the region called Ottoman Armenia (also known as Western Armenia). This region was extended northward to the western part of the Trabzon province to provide the Democratic Republic of Armenia with an outlet to the Black Sea at the port of Trabzon.

The Turkish War of Independence, in which the Turks defeated the Armenians and the Greeks, forced the allies to return to the negotiating table before the ratification of the Treaty. The parties signed and ratified the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, which established the present borders of Turkey. The eastern borders were obtained through the Alexandropol Treaty on December 2, 1920, and through the Kars Treaty, signed on October 23, 1921 and ratified in Yerevan on September 11, 1922, with Armenia and the Soviet Union., confirming the Treaty of Lausanne. The Treaty of Lausanne and related articles are not recognized by the current government of the Republic of Armenia.

Democratic Republic of Armenia

Armenian civilians fleeing from Kars after being captured by the forces of Turkish general Kâzım Karabekir (c. 1920-21).

The DRA's short-lived independence ended with war, territorial conflicts, a full-blown influx of refugees from Turkey, disease and famine. However, the Entente, terrified by the actions of the Ottoman government, tried to help the new Armenian state through funds and other forms of aid.

At the end of the war, it was decided to divide the Ottoman Empire. Signed between the Allied Powers and the Ottoman Empire at Sèvres on August 10, 1920, the Treaty of Sèvres promised to maintain the existence of the DRA and to unite the territories of the Ottoman Empire partially populated by Ottoman Armenians.^{[quote required]} Because the new borders of Armenia were to be drawn by US President Woodrow Wilson, Ottoman Armenia is also known as “Wilsonian Armenia”. The possibility of turning Armenia into a protectorate under the tutelage of the United States was even considered. The treaty, however, was rejected by the Turkish national movement and never came into effect. The movement led by Atatürk used the treaty as the occasion to declare itself the legitimate government of Turkey and replaced the monarchy with its capital in Istanbul for a republic with its own in Ankara.

In 1920, Armenia and Turkey went to war, a violent conflict that ended with the Treaty of Alexandropol (December 2, 1920). The Alexandropol Treaty forced Armenia to disarm most of its military forces, cede more than 50% of its pre-war territory, and relinquish all territories conferred to it in the Treaty of Sèvres. At the same time, the Soviet Eleventh Army under the command of Grigori Ordzhonikidze, invaded Armenia at Karavansarai (present-day Ijevan) on November 29. On December 4, Ordzhonikidze's forces entered Yerevan and the short-lived Republic of Armenia collapsed.

Soviet Armenia

Shield of the Armenian SSR.

Armenia was annexed by Bolshevik Russia and, along with Georgia and Azerbaijan, was incorporated into the Soviet Union as part of the Transcaucasian SFSR (RSFST) on March 4, 1922. With this annexation, the Treaty of Alexandropol was superseded by the Turkish-Soviet Treaty of Kars. In the deal, Turkey allowed the Soviet Union to take over Adjara with the port city of Batumi in exchange for sovereignty over the cities of Kars, Ardahan and Iğdır, all part of Russian Armenia.

The RSFST existed from 1922 to 1936, when it split into three separate entities (Armenian SSR, Azerbaijan SSR, and Georgian SSR). The Armenians enjoyed a period of relative stability under Soviet rule. They received medicine, food, and other supplies from Moscow, and communist rule proved a soothing balm in contrast to the turbulent final years of the Ottoman Empire. The situation was difficult for the church, which struggled under the Soviet government. After Lenin's death, Stalin, a Georgian by birth, seized the reins of power and began an era of renewed fear and terror for the Armenians.

Armenia was not the scene of any battles in World War II. An estimated 500,000 Armenians (nearly a third of the population) served in the military during the war and 175,000 died.

Fears subsided when Stalin died in 1953 and Nikita Khrushchev emerged as the new leader of the Soviet Union. Soon life in Soviet Armenia began to see a rapid improvement. The church, which suffered greatly under Stalin, was revived when Catholicos Vazgen I assumed the duties of his office in 1955. In 1967, a memorial to the victims of the Armenian Genocide was built on the Tsitsernakaberd hill above the Hrazdan Gorge in Yerevan. This occurred after the mass demonstrations on the fiftieth anniversary of the tragic event in 1965.

During the Mikhail Gorbachev era of the 1980s, with the reforms of Glasnost and Perestroika, Armenians began to demand better environmental care for their country, opposing the pollution brought by Soviet-built factories. Tensions also developed between Soviet Azerbaijan and its autonomous district of Nagorno-Karabakh, a region with an Armenian majority. Around 484,000 Armenians lived in Azerbaijan in 1970. Karabakh Armenians demanded unification with Soviet Armenia. Peaceful protests in Yerevan supporting Karabakh Armenians were met with anti-Armenian pogroms in the Azerbaijani city of Sumgait. Compounding Armenia's problems, a devastating earthquake occurred in 1988 with a magnitude of 7.2 on the Richter scale.

Gorbachev's inability to alleviate any of Armenia's problems created disillusionment among Armenians and fueled a growing hunger for independence. In May 1990, the New Armenian Army was established, acting as a separate defense force from the Soviet Red Army. Clashes soon broke out between Armenian and Soviet Internal Security Forces (MVD) troops based in Yerevan as the Armenians decided to commemorate the establishment of the First Republic of Armenia in 1918. The violence resulted in the deaths of five Armenians killed in a Shootout with the MVD at the train station. Witnesses claimed that the MVD used excessive force and that they had instigated the fight.

Renewed shootings broke out between Armenian militiamen and Soviet troops in Sovetashén, near the capital, killing more than 26 people, most of them Armenians. The Armenian pogrom in Baku in January 1990 forced almost all of the 200,000 Armenians in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to flee to Armenia. On August 23, 1990, Armenia declared sovereignty over its territory. On March 17, 1991, Armenia, together with the Baltic republics, the Georgian SSR and the Moldovan SSR, boycotted a national referendum in which 78% of all voters voted to retain the Soviet Union in a form reformed.

Independence

Ter-Petrosyan led Armenia along with Defense Minister Vazgen Sargsyan through the Nagorno-Karabakh war with neighboring Azerbaijan. The early post-Soviet years were marred by economic difficulties, which had their roots early in the Karabakh conflict when the Azerbaijan Popular Front managed to pressure the Azerbaijan SSR to instigate a railway and air blockade against Armenia. This move effectively brought Armenia's economy to a standstill as 85% of its cargo and goods arrived via rail traffic. In 1993, Turkey joined the blockade against Armenia in support of Azerbaijan.

The Karabakh war ended after a Russian-brokered ceasefire was put in place in 1994. The war was a success for Karabakh Armenian forces who managed to capture 16% of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh itself. Since then, Armenia and Azerbaijan have held peace talks, mediated by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The status of Karabakh has not yet been determined. The economies of both countries have been affected by the lack of a comprehensive resolution and Armenia's borders with Turkey and Azerbaijan remain closed. When Azerbaijan and Armenia finally agreed to a ceasefire in 1994, an estimated 30,000 people were killed and over a million displaced.

As it has entered the 21st century, Armenia faces many difficulties. It has made a total switch to a market economy. One study ranks it as the 41st most "economically free" in the world as of 2014. Its relations with Europe, the Middle East, and the Commonwealth of Independent States have allowed Armenia to increase trade. Gas, oil, and other supplies arrive via two vital routes: Iran and Georgia. Armenia maintains cordial relations with both countries.

In March 2018, the Armenian parliament elected Armén Sarkissian as the new president of Armenia. Controversial constitutional reform was implemented to reduce presidential power, while strengthening the authority of the prime minister. In May 2018, the parliament elected opposition leader Nikol Pashinián as the new prime minister. His predecessor, Serzh Sargsyan, resigned two weeks earlier after widespread anti-government demonstrations.

In 2020, Azerbaijan recovered a large amount of territories in and around Nagorno Karabakh that were under Armenian rule (Artsakh) after winning the Second Upper Karabakh War (2020 Upper Karabakh Ceasefire Agreement). This Armenian defeat caused strong social tensions in Armenia (Protests in Armenia of 2020-2021 and attempted coup in Armenia of 2021).

Government and politics

Government

In 1990 the first democratic legislative elections were held and in 1991 the first president of the Republic was elected. Armenia is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The President of the Republic of Armenia is the head of state, elected by direct universal suffrage. The president appoints the prime minister, who in turn selects the government ministers. Between 2008 and 2018, Serzh Sargsyan, of the Republican Party, was the president of Armenia, until he was forced to resign from his position in 2018, after a series of demonstrations that converged in the Velvet Revolution.

The highest legislative body is the National Assembly of Armenia (Azgayin Zhoghov), with 190 members. The unicameral parliament is currently controlled by the conservative Republican Party. The main opposition parties are Prosperous Armenia, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, Heritage and the Armenian National Congress. The judiciary is made up of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, the attorney general, and the minor courts. The current Constitution has been in force since July 5, 1995 and was amended on November 27, 2005. Armenia has a legal system of universal suffrage starting at 18 years of age.

Armenian politics is carried out within the framework of a democratic republic. Under the Armenian Constitution, the president is the head of government of a multi-party system. The main objective of the Armenian government is to build a Western style of parliamentary democracy as the basis of its form of government. However, international observers from the Council of Europe and the United States Department of State have questioned the fairness of parliamentary and presidential elections and the constitutional referendum since 1995, citing voting deficiencies, lack of cooperation on the part of of the Central Electoral Commission and the deficient maintenance of electoral lists and polling places. Freedom House Armenia, in its 2008 report, categorized Armenia as a "semi-entrenched authoritarian regime" (along with Moldova, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan and Russia) and gave it the 20th place in a ranking of 29 nations in transition, with a "democracy score" of 5.21 out of 7 (7 represents the lowest democratic progress). Since 1999, the "democracy score" The Freedom House score for Armenia has declined steadily (from 4.79 to 5.21). Furthermore, Freedom House ranked Armenia as "partly free" in his 2007 report, though he did not categorize it as an "electoral democracy," indicating an absence of relatively free and competitive elections. Still, significant progress appears to have occurred and the 2008 presidential election was interpreted as largely democratic by OSCE and Western monitors.

The administrative division of the country includes 10 regions and 21 cities; each district has its own legislative and executive body.

International politics

Embassy of Armenia in Moscow.

Armenia currently maintains good relations with almost every country in the world, with two important exceptions being its immediate neighbors Turkey and Azerbaijan. Tensions were running high between Armenians and Azerbaijanis during the last years of the Soviet Union. The Nagorno Karabagh war dominated politics in the region throughout the 1990s. The border between the two rival countries remains closed to this day, with no permanent solution to the conflict reached, despite mediation provided by organizations such as the OSCE.

Turkey also has a long history of bad relations with Armenia, most notably its refusal to recognize the 1915 Armenian genocide. The Karabakh conflict became an excuse for Turkey to close its border with Armenia in 1993. No has lifted the blockade despite Turkish internal pressures interested in Armenian markets and Armenian requests to open the borders.

Because of its hostile position between its two neighbors, Armenia maintains close security ties with Russia. At the request of the Armenian government, Russia maintains a military base in the northwest of the Armenian city of Gyumri as a deterrent against Turkey. Despite this, Armenia has also moved closer to Euro-Atlantic structures in recent years. It maintains good relations with the United States, especially due to the Armenian diaspora in that country, since (according to the 2000 census) there are 385,488 Armenians living in the country.

Armenia is a member of the Council of Europe, maintains friendly relations with the European Union, especially with France and Greece, since a survey in 2005 reported that 64% of the population of Armenia spoke out in favor of joining the The European Union and several Armenian officials have also expressed the wish that their country would eventually become a member state, as some predict an official offer of membership will be made in a few years. It has also been examined which part of society is in favor of joining NATO. However, President Serzh Sargsyan wanted to keep Armenia linked to the Russian Federation and the CIS.

Armed Forces

Armoured BTR-80 troop transport during the parade the 15th anniversary of the independence of Armenia.

The Armenian Army, Air Force, Air Defense, and Border Guard encompass all four branches of the Republic of Armenia's armed forces. This structure of the Armenian military has been in place since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and with the establishment of the Ministry of Defense in 1992. The commander-in-chief is the elected ruler of the republic. The Ministry of Defense is in charge of the political leadership, currently headed by Serzh Sargsyan, while there remains a military command in the hands of the General Staff, led by the chief of staff, who is currently Colonel General Yuri Grigor Khachaturov.

The active military consists of about 60,000 soldiers, with an additional reserve of 32,000, and a “reserve of the reserve” of 350,000 troops. Border guards are in charge of patrolling the country's borders with Georgia and Azerbaijan, while Russian troops monitor the borders with Iran and Turkey. In the event of an eventual attack, Armenia is prepared to mobilize every man and woman in reasonable health between the ages of 24 and 55, all of whom are in military readiness status.

The Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, which sets comprehensive limits on the dominant categories of military equipment, was ratified by the Armenian parliament in July 1992. In 1993, Armenia signed the multilateral Chemical Weapons Convention, which calls for their eventual removal. Armenia joined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in July 1993 and is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) along with Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. He is also a member of the Association for Peace. It is part of a NATO organization called the Euro-Atlantic Social Council (EAPC) and has participated in the peacekeeping mission inside Kosovo. Company 46 was part of the international Coalition that invaded Iraq in 2003.

Human Rights

In terms of human rights, regarding membership of the seven bodies of the International Bill of Human Rights, which include the Human Rights Committee (HRC), Armenia has signed or ratified:

Status of major international human rights instruments

Armenia	International treaties
	CESCR		CCPR			CERD	CED	CEDAW		CAT		CRC			MWC	CRPD
	CESCR	CESCR-OP	CCPR	CCPR-OP1	CCPR-OP2-DP			CEDAW	CEDAW-OP	CAT	CAT-OP	CRC	CRC-OP-AC	CRC-OP-SC		CRPD	CRPD-OP
Pertenence
Signed and ratified, signed, but not ratified, neither signed nor ratified, without information, it has agreed to sign and ratify the body concerned, but also recognizes the competence to receive and process individual communications from the competent bodies.

Territorial organization

Armenia is divided into 11 provinces. These are called marzer (ԁԀԀրԀԀ ) or in the singular form marz (ԁԀրԀɦ) in Armenian.

Shirak

Lorri

Tavush

Aragatsotn

Armavir

Yerevan

Ararat

Kotayk

Gegharkunik

VayotsDzor

Syunik

Geography

Detailed map of Armenia.

Armenia is located in the Transcaucasia, the southwestern area of Russia, between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Modern Armenia occupies part of historical Armenia, the center of which was in the valley of the Araks River and the region around Lake Van in Turkey. Armenia is bordered by Georgia to the north, Azerbaijan to the east, the Autonomous Republic of Nakhchivan to the southwest, Iran to the south, and Turkey to the west. The geography of present-day Armenia is that of a landlocked country located in Asia Minor.

Armenian terrain is mostly mountainous, with fast-flowing rivers and few forests. The climate is continental: hot summers and cold winters. No point in the country is below 400 meters above sea level. Mount Ararat, an Armenian symbol, is the highest mountain in the region and is located in the territory of Turkey, so the highest altitude in Armenia is Aragats.

Pollution produced by toxic chemicals, such as DDT, does not contribute to the enrichment of the Armenian soil, which is already of poor quality. A communication blockade, carried out by Turkey due to the conflict with Azerbaijan, has resulted in a process of deforestation.

Armenia is trying to solve its ecological problems. A Ministry of Nature Protection has been created, while air and water pollution was punished with taxes, as well as the generation of solid toxic waste, the proceeds of which are used to carry out environmental protection and recovery projects.. The Armenian government plans to close the only nuclear power plant, Metzamor, which dates from Soviet times, as soon as alternative energy sources can be exploited.

Satellite image of Armenia obtained by NASA (May 2003) highlighting Lake Sevan.

Geographic data

• Area: 29 743 km2.
• Average height: 1800 m s.n.m.
• Maximum height: 4095 m s.n.m.
• Coasts: it doesn't have.
• Geographical location: between Iran and Asia Minor, the Black Sea and the Transcaucasia and Mesopotamia plains.
• Political frontiers: north with Georgia, east with Azerbaijan, south with Iran and Azerbaijan, west with Turkey.
• Climate: dry and continental. In the plains, winters are long and severe and summers, short and hot. In the mountains, the climate is cooler and the conditions are much more extreme in winter.
• Vegetation: steppe.
• Subsoil: rich in minerals such as gold, silver, copper, iron and salt.

Topography

The topography of Armenia is mountainous and volcanic.

Twenty-five million years ago, geological upheaval pushed the earth's crust to form the Armenian Plateau, thus creating the complex topography of Armenia. The South Caucasus mountain range stretches from the north of the country, continuing southeast between Lake Sevan and Azerbaijan, then across the Armenian-Azerbaijani border to Iran. Thus situated, the mountains make traveling north-south and south-north very difficult. The geological process continues today, and its greatest manifestations are in some cases earthquakes and small-scale earthquakes. In December 1988, the country's second largest city, Gyumri, formerly known as Leninakan, was badly damaged by an earthquake that killed more than 25,000 people.

Its territory occupies an area of 29,743 km², which for comparison is almost exactly the same land area as Belgium. Approximately half are located at more than 2,000 m above sea level. and only 3% of it is below 650 m. The lower elevation areas are found in the valleys of the Aráks and Debet rivers, in the north of the country, with altitudes between 380 and 430 m above sea level, respectively. The altitude in the South Caucasus varies between 2,640 and 3,280 m; Southwest of this range is the Armenian Plateau, which is dotted with small mountain ranges and volcanoes, some of which are inactive. The largest of these, Mount Aragáts, at 4,095 m above sea level, is also the highest point in the country. Most of the population lives in the western and northwestern part of the country, where the two largest urban agglomerations are located: the capital Yerevan and Gyumri.

Climate

Temperatures in Armenia are generally dependent on elevation. The mountain formations block the moderating influences of the climate that the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea generate, which creates a great climatic difference between the seasons of the year. On the Armenian Plateau, the average winter temperature is zero degrees Celsius, while the average summer temperature exceeds 25 °C. Average rainfall ranges from 250 mm per year in the Araks river valley to 800 mm at the highest points in the country. Despite the harshness of winter in most of the country, the fertile volcanic soil of the plateau made Armenia one of the first agricultural sites in the world.

Flora and fauna

Syrian bear

The territory of the Republic of Armenia is rich in multiple endemic species. Halophyte plants are found in the Aráks valley. Artemisias are common from a height of 1400 m above sea level. In the mountainous area many thorny bushes and other plants grow. In the high mountains there are xerophytic plants. Around the 1900s trees and shrubs covered approximately 25% of the surface, in 1964 approximately 15% and in 2005 only 8-10%.

Armenian rock lizard

Leopard of the Caucasus

In Sangesur, in the south of the country, the forest edge reaches about 2,400 m above sea level. The world of the plant resembles that of the mountains. There are many reptiles, including the Armenian rock lizard and some poisonous ones, such as vipers. Also arachnids, such as scorpions. Wild pigs, jackals, deer, mink, and eagles live in the humid valleys; in the steppes mostly rodents from the mountains; and in the forests Syrian brown bears, wild cats and wolves. Lynxes and some Caucasian leopards can still be found in the Chosrow protected area.

The Latin name for apricot or apricot is derived from Armenia. The apricot is very famous and is an Armenian national symbol, represented by the color of the lower band on the Armenian flag.

Economy

Until its independence, Armenia's economy was based on industrial production of chemicals, electronics, machinery, processed food, synthetic rubber, and textiles, and was highly dependent on external resources. Agriculture contributed only 20% of the Gross Domestic Product and 10% of employment before the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. The republic had developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods. to nearby republics in exchange for raw materials and energy.

Armenian mines produce copper, zinc, gold, and lead. Most of the power is generated with fuel imported from Russia, including gas and nuclear fuel (for the only atomic power plant); the main source of domestic energy is hydroelectric.

Exports to		Imports
Country	Percentage	Country	Percentage
BelgiumBelgium	23 %	Russia Russia	15%
Russia Russia	15%	United States	12 %
United States	13 %	BelgiumBelgium	10%
IranIran	10%	IranIran	9 %
Other	39 %	Other	54 %

Evolution of GDP per capita in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.

An ongoing construction boom, especially in the city of Yerevan, has kept Armenia's economic development in double digits. Like other newly independent states of the former Soviet Union, Armenia's economy suffers from the legacy of a centrally planned economy and from Soviet disruption. Soviet investment and aid in Armenian industry has virtually disappeared, so few major Soviet industries still operate there. In addition, the effects of the 1988 Spitak earthquake, which killed more than 25,000 people and left another 500,000 homeless, are still being felt. The conflict with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave has not been resolved. The closure of the Azerbaijani and Turkish borders has devastated the economy, because Armenia depends on foreign sources of energy and most of the raw materials come from abroad. Land routes through Georgia and Iran are inadequate or unreliable. GDP fell by almost 60% from 1989 to 1992-1993. The national currency, the copita, suffered from hyperinflation during its first few years after its introduction in 1993.

However, the government has been able to make vast economic reforms that have resulted in lower inflation and steady growth. The 1994 ceasefire in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has also helped the economy. Armenia has had strong economic development since 1995, and inflation has been negligible for recent years. New sectors, such as gemstone processing and jewelry manufacturing, information and communication technologies, and even tourism are beginning to replace more traditional sectors in the economy, such as agriculture.

The city of Yerevan, with Mount Ararat in February 2012. Capital is the main economic centre in the country.

This steady economic progress has meant increased aid from international institutions. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and other international financial institutions (IFIs) and foreign countries they are expanding grants and sizeable loans. Loans to Armenia in 1993 exceeded $1.1 billion. These loans are directed toward reducing the budget deficit, modernization; the privatization of businesses; energy; agriculture, food processing, transportation, and the health and education sectors; and ongoing rehabilitation in the earthquake zone. The government joined the world trade organization on February 5, 2003. But one of the main sources of foreign direct investment remains the Armenian diaspora, which finances a significant part of infrastructure reconstruction and other public projects. Being a growing democratic state, Armenia also hopes to get more financial help from the Western world.

In June 1994, a liberal law in favor of foreign investment was passed, and in 1997 a law on privatization was adopted, as well as a program on the privatization of the state. Continued progress will depend on the government's ability to consolidate its macroeconomic management, including increasing the tax rate, improving the investment climate, and making strides in the fight against corruption.

In the 2005 CPI International Chart of Transparency (Corruption Opinion Index), Armenia was scored a value of 88 (on a scale of 1 to 158), continuing to be one of the least corrupt states among the former Soviet republics. According to the UN Human Development Report in 2005, Armenia has a Human Development Index (HDI) of 83 (on a scale of 1 to 177), the highest among the Transcaucasian republics. In the 2006 index of economic freedom, Armenia ranked 27th, next to Japan and ahead of countries such as Norway, Spain, Portugal and Italy. This result puts Armenia in the category of the “most liberal” countries, making it the most economically free state in the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Energy

Electrical production of Armenia

Armenia has no oil or natural gas reserves and imports it from Russia across the Georgian border. The gas powers the Yerevan (242 MW) and Hrazdan (1,110 MW) thermal power plants, which produce 24% of the country's energy. In 2007, the first phase of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline, between Tabriz and the Armenian border, was completed, and it is planned to continue to the center of the country to replace Gazprom gas with Iranian gas, but the conflicts in the region greatly limit the use of Iranian gas.

The Metsamor nuclear power plant (408 MW), the only one in the country, built during Soviet times and operating since 1976, provides 43% of the country's energy. There are plans to replace it with a new one, due to its age.

Armenia also has 10 hydroelectric power plants that provide 33% of the electricity, grouped into two basins: the Sevan–Hrazdan Hydroelectric Complex, also called the Sevan–Hrazdan Cascade, along the Hrazdan River and its tributaries, between Lake Sevan and the city of Yerevan, consisting of seven hydroelectric power plants with a combined power of 565 MW, fed by canals and tubes with water from the lake, and that of the Vorotan River, also called ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade, consisting of five reservoirs and three hydroelectric plants with a combined capacity of 404 MW.

The Jermaghbyur geothermal power plant in the province of Syunik', capable of producing 150 MW, is being planned.

In 2008, the Lori 1 wind power plant was inaugurated, the only one in the country, in the northern province of Lori, with a combined capacity of 2.6 MW, built in collaboration with Iran.

Demographics

Evolution of the population since 1949 (in thousands of inhabitants).

Armenia has a population of 3,215,800 (April 2006 census), and is the second most densely populated of the former Soviet Republics. There has been a problem of population decline due to the increase in emigration levels after the breakup of the USSR. Rates of emigration and population decline, however, have declined dramatically in recent years, with a moderate influx of Armenians returning to Armenia, this trend is expected to continue. Armenia, in fact, is expected to resume its positive population growth by 2010.

97.9% of the population is of ethnic Armenian origin. Yazidis make up 1.3%, and Russians 0.5%. Other minorities include Assyrians, Ukrainians, Greeks, Kurds, Georgians, and Belarusians. There are also small communities of Vlachs, Mordwins, Ossetians, Udi, and Tats. There are also minorities of Poles and Caucasian Germans, although they are heavily Russified. During the Soviet era, Azerbaijanis were historically the second largest population in the country (about 10% in 1939.) However, due to hostilities with neighboring Azerbaijan in the disputed Nagorno Karabagh region, virtually all of them immigrated from Armenia. On the contrary, Armenia received a large influx of Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan, thus giving a homogeneous Armenian population. According to the United Nations Population Fund the population in Armenia will decrease.

Armenia has a very large diaspora (eight million by some estimates, which far exceeds the three million people of Armenia itself), with communities existing all over the world. The largest communities can be found: in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Chile, Colombia, also in the Russian Federation, the United States, France, Georgia, Iran, Israel (where about ten thousand Armenians reside, mainly in Jerusalem; there are also Armenians in the West Bank, particularly in Bethlehem), Lebanon, Syria, Turkey (mostly in and around Istanbul) among which must be considered the 40,000 to 70,000 Armenians still living in the country, Uruguay and Ukraine. In addition, about 130,000 Armenians live in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, where they constitute the majority.

The official language of the country is Armenian, and as a consequence of the Soviet period, Russian is still quite widespread, especially in urban areas. Much of the urban population (especially in Yerevan) can be considered bilingual.

Religion

The predominant religion in Armenia is Christianity. The roots of the Armenian Church begin in the I century. According to tradition, the Armenian Church was founded by two of Jesus' apostles, Judas Thaddeus and Bartholomew, who preached Christianity in Armenia between the 40s and 60s. Due to these two apostles, the official name of the Armenian Church is Church. Armenian Apostolic. Armenia was the first nation to adopt Christianity as its state religion, in the year 301. About 93% of Armenian Christians belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church, also called Gregorian Church, it is one of the Churches Eastern Orthodox, like the Coptic and Syriac Church, and grouped among the so-called Miaphysites. This church is considered Orthodox (although it should not be confused with the Greek Orthodox Church), for having maintained the orthodoxy of Christian doctrine in accordance with the fathers of the Church. Armenia also has a population of about 180,000 Catholics of the Armenian Rite, and Protestants and Evangelical followers of Armenian traditional religion. Yazidi Kurds, who live in the western part of the country, practice Yazidism. The Armenian Rite Catholic Church is headquartered in Bzoummar, Lebanon.

Monastery of Khor Virap, centuryVIId. C., raised in the shadow of Mount Ararat, where according to the Bible the Ark of Noah stood.

Armenia is sustained in part by a very large Armenian diaspora around the world: in Russia (2.5 million), in North America (1.5 million), in Africa (15,000), in Syria and Lebanon (120,000), in the European Union (500,000), mainly in France; and in Latin America, (125,000), mainly settled in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Venezuela, Chile and Mexico.

• Apostolic Armenians (Armenian Apostle Church): 93%.
• Other Christians: 4 %.
• Animists: 2 %.

Saint Gregory I the Illuminator, Cathedral of Yerevan. The cathedral was completed in September 2001 for the celebration of the 1700th anniversary of the Armenian Christianity.

Over 93% of Armenian Christians belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church, a form of Eastern (non-Chalcedonian) Orthodoxy, which is a highly ritualistic and conservative church, roughly comparable to the Coptic and Syriac churches.

The Evangelical Church of Armenia has a very important and supportive presence in the lives of Armenians with more than several thousand members throughout the country. Its origin dates back to 1846, which was under the patronage of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople, whose goal was to train qualified clergy for the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Other Christian denominations practicing the faith based on the Nicene Creed in Armenia are the Pentecostal branches of the Protestant community such as the Word of Life, the Armenian Brotherhood Church, Baptists, known as the oldest existing denominations in Armenian and allowed by the authorities of the Soviet Union, and Presbyterians.

Catholics also exist in Armenia, both Latin Rite and Armenian Rite Catholics. The Mechitarists (also spelled "Mekhitarists" Armenian: ԁɔɔ ɐᴀᴀᴀᴀʀ), are a congregation of Benedictine monks of the Armenian Catholic Church founded in 1712 by Mekhitar of Sebaste. They are best known for their series of scholarly publications on ancient Armenian versions of ancient Greek texts that would otherwise be lost. The Armenian Catholic denomination has its headquarters in Bzoummar (Lebanon).

Armenia is home to a Russian community of Molokans who practice a form of spiritual Christianity that originated in the Russian Orthodox Church.

Culture

Armenian dancers.

Armenians have their own distinctive alphabet and language. The alphabet was invented by Mesrob Mashtots and consists of 39 letters (with 36 phonetic sounds), three of which were added during the Cilician period. 96% of the country's inhabitants speak Armenian, while 75.8% of the population also speak Russian as a result of the Soviet language policy. The adult literacy rate in Armenia is 98%. Most of Yerevan's adults can communicate in Russian, while the popularity of English is growing. In 1914, Grigori Nikolaevich Neuimin named the asteroid 780 Armenia.

Literature

Literature began in Armenia around 400 B.C. They created most of the literary arts around Moses of Khorene, in the 5th century. Over the years, both the elements of literature as well as the stories and myths have changed through the generations. During the 19th century, writer Mikael Nalbandian worked to create a new Armenian literary identity. Nalbandian's poem “The Song of the Italian Girl” became the lyrics of the Armenian national anthem Mer Hayrenik.

Art

Armenian architecture has developed its own distinctive style since the IV century, which is manifested in the churches and monasteries built in the country throughout its history, but also in the constructions carried out by the Armenian communities that have left the country in recent centuries.

Music

Traditional Armenian dance.

Armenia is the motherland of contemporary classical composer and conductor Aram Khachaturyan. He is considered one of the great musicians of the 20th century together with Sergei Prokofiev and Dmitri Shostakovich they form the trio of great symphonists of the Soviet Union. His career developed mainly in Moscow. It became popular thanks to the selection of some passages from his work by Stanley Kubrick for the soundtrack of 2001 A Space Odyssey (“The Spinners” from the Gayaneh adage). Among his works, Gayaneh, Spartacus and his contribution with great scores to the ballet stand out. of the saber» the last movement of Gayaneh.

There are currently several internationally renowned musicians from or linked to Armenia: Grammy Award winner Arto Tunçboyaciyan, violinist and composer Samvel Yervinyan, and especially the rock group formed in Los Angeles in 1995 System of a Down whose members, Serj Tankian, Daron Malakian, Shavo Odadjian and John Dolmayan, are of Armenian origin. Two exponents of Armenian music proper are Levón Minassián and Armand Amar although there is a long tradition of producing regional and traditional music. Another well-known singer of Armenian descent is the Frenchman Charles Aznavour.

Armenia has been part of the EBU since 2005, a fact that allowed it to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest the following year, passing the semifinal with very good results until the 2011 edition in Düsseldorf. In its brief participation it is one of the countries with the best averaged results. Armenia has also participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, having organized the 2011 edition contest in which thirteen countries participated.

Gastronomy

The apricot, a culinary symbol of Armenian cuisine.

The cuisine of Armenia is made up of the dishes and culinary traditions of the Armenian peoples, including members of the Armenian diaspora. The history of Armenia shows that after the destruction of the Seleucid Empire the first independent Armenian state emerged, it was founded in 190 BC. C. by Atarxias, whose successors are known as the Artaxid dynasty and being later in the XX century part of the Soviet state, made this the latter that marked some culinary customs in this country and established a change in the culinary traditions of many centuries. Armenian cuisine is characterized by being between Mediterranean and Caucasian cuisine, it is a set of elaborations characteristic of a nomadic population that lives in a cold region. With great influences from the cuisine of the Middle East, Russia and the Balkans.

The pomegranate is one of the fruits that symbolizes Armenia and many Armenian traditions are carried out representing this fruit. For example, in Armenian weddings it is a tradition to throw a grenade against the wall, seeking the blessing of their children. The pomegranate is also the diversity within the union, represented by the grains. And, going further, it is a tribute to the Armenians of the diaspora.

Sports

Armenian Levon Aronian is Great International Master of Chess.

Many types of sports are played in Armenia, including wrestling, weightlifting, judo, soccer, table tennis, chess, and boxing. Armenia is a mountainous terrain and offers the opportunity for some sports such as skiing and mountaineering to be practiced on a massive scale. Being a landlocked country, water sports can only be practiced on lakes, especially Lake Sevan. Competitively, Armenia has been successful in weightlifting and wrestling.

Armenia is also an active participant in the international sports community with full membership in the Union of European Football Associations and the International Ice Hockey Federation. It is also home to the Pan - Armenian Games.

Your soccer team has never qualified for the European Championship or the Soccer World Cup. It is a mid-level selection in Europe. At the national level, the Armenian Premier League is the most important tournament in the country, it was created in 1992 after independence, and the most successful team is Pyunik Yerevan with 14 titles.

Armenia is a true world power in chess. The world champion Tigran Petrosian was one of the greatest exponents of positional chess. At the chess Olympiad held in Turin in 2006, the men's team was proclaimed champion and the women's team ranked seventh. Levon Aronian, Vladimir Akopián, Karen Asrian, Smbat Lputian, Gabriel Sargissian and Artashes Minasian made up the men's team. Lilit Mkrtchian, Elina Danielian, Nelli Aginian and Siranush Andriasian made up the women's. The technical team consisted of Arshak Petrosian and Tigran Nalbandian. Multiple Russian world champion Garry Kasparov has Armenian roots on his mother's side.

• Armenia at the Olympic Games
• Soccer Selection of Armenia
• Premier League of Armenia