Author: VK
In Armenia, the diversification of the economy in the direction of expansion of more productive sectors is taking place. This, according to "Voice of Armenia", was said by Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisyan the other day as he introduced in the Parliament the execution of the state budget in 2012. The report showed that the proportion of industry in gross domestic product in 2012 was 17.2%, whereas in the pre-crisis 2008, the figure was 13.3%.
The largest increase was observed in the manufacturing, mining and metallurgical industries. The Prime Minister drew attention to the fact that in the foreign market in 2012 compared to the previous year there was a decline in metals prices, so the economic growth was, in fact, largely achieved through the mobilization of domestic resources and the new industrial policy of the government .
The agriculture developed at a good pace; its contribution to GDP growth was 1.9%. According to the head of the government, the government actively subsidizes this area. According to his data, in the past year, government subsidies of interest rates on agricultural loans amounted to more than $ 1.3 million. To subsidize the market price of fertilizers, the state budget allocated about $ 3.5 million, and for diesel fuel - about $ 4.7 million. In addition, more than $ 1.1 million has been allocated for the import of 485 head of breeding cows with high performance, which were distributed among 24 households. As a result, the share of agriculture in GDP was 19% (in 2008, the figure was 16.3%).
One of the most important results in the last four years, according to Sarkisyan, was the increase in the GDP share of exports of goods and services to 25%, while this figure in the pre-crisis period was only 15% ...
There is another important macroeconomic indicator: the ratio of budget deficit to GDP last year was only 1.5%, whereas, as a program component, which is observed by the government, it is 2%.
At the same time, the prime minister acknowledged that performance in the construction sector, the share of which in GDP fell by more than half, dropping to 12.2%, remains disappointing. In addition, the external debt of the state increased by $ 270 million compared to rates in 2011.
***
The “Mirror” newspaper published in Baku reports that a memorandum on the principles of joint ventures for the development of the transport network and the transportation of goods by the Silk Wind multimodal block trains signed in 2012 between Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Turkey has received strong support from Azerbaijan. The government completed an interagency examination of the intergovernmental agreement on it, giving a positive conclusion on the basis of a general consensus which made it possible to give permission for its signing...
Azerbaijan's position, as the newspaper writes, is officially conveyed to the partner countries, and now Baku expects their reaction. However, it turned out that Turkey is not yet ready to sign the agreement, Georgia is considering such a prospect, and Kazakhstan has not expressed its position yet.
Recall that the memorandum was signed by the transport ministers of the four countries on the initiative of Kazakhstan within the framework of the TRACECA project on logistics and maritime routes. It defines the legal basis for the development of the technical aspects of the project and will be the basis for the signing of the Intergovernmental agreement on the block trains project.
It is expected that multi-modal block train will dramatically accelerate the delivery of goods from China to Europe. The article states that the total length of the route is 4192 km with an estimated travel time of 12 days. The project is expected to use the new infrastructure facilities: the rectifying railway line Dzhezkazgan – Beineu (Kazakhstan), the International Sea Trade Port Alat (Azerbaijan), the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway line (Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey) and the "Marmara" railway tunnel line project (Turkey ).
The Silk Wind project will attract traffic to the TRACECA transport corridor (Europe - Caucasus - Asia) and provide simplification of administrative customs and border procedures for handling traffic, and this complex will increase trade and economic cooperation in the region.
***
The "South Ossetia" newspaper describes the participation of leading experts, representatives of the Republican Association of Teachers of Russian Language and Literature in the International Internet Conference "The Russian language between Europe and Asia" held in the last days of May in Perm, organized by the "Rossotrudnichestvo" Federal Agency, the "Eurasian Dialogue" discussion forum, the "Russian World"Foundation, the Union of Russian Writers and the Government of the Perm region.
The publication points out that one of the main objectives of the conference was the consolidation of the Russian and foreign public in the preservation and dissemination of the Russian language as the language of international communication in Eurasia.
At the opening ceremony for its international audience the appeal was made by Russian President Vladimir Putin. In particular, he said: "The Russian language is not just a national treasure of our country, but also the language of international communication, the keeper of the great achievements of world culture. Speaking Russian offers great career prospects, makes it possible to expand the range of human contacts, to better navigate the global information space . "
The author informs that within the framework of the forum in Tskhinvali, the Russian Centre of Science and Culture held a meeting of the round table "Russian language as an integral part of world culture" and "The Role of Russian compatriots living in South Ossetia in maintenance and development of Russian language". Members of Tskhinvali "round table also heard reports by the head of "Rossotrudnichestvo" Konstantin Kosachev, coordinator of the "Eurasian Dialogue" Andrei Klimov, the governor of the Perm region Viktor Basargin, deputy chairman of the Federation Council of Russia Ilyas Umakhanov, secretary of the Union of Writers of Russia Alexander Fomenko, as well as performances by experts in Russian language from Vietnam, the United Kingdom, Iceland, Greece, and Belgium.
The reports said the Russian language as an important means of international communication for most of the post-Soviet states and covered questions of the problems of Russian language in the world and methods of teaching it.
The newspaper notes that the conference in Perm attracted great interest of the South Ossetian experts in Russian language and was the first positive experience of public participation in the projects together with other internet sites.
***
The Georgian Times newspaper reports the death of six soldiers of the Georgian contingent serving in the ISAF international peacekeeping mission as a result of the terrorist attacks in the Helmand province in Afghanistan. 9 soldiers are wounded, but their life is secure, the newspaper said.
The mourning for the victims was declared in Georgia on June 7 throughout the country, state flags were flown at half mast, and all the entertainments were cancelled.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili expressed his deep condolences to the families of the military. "Georgia has suffered another loss for our freedom and independence on a very complex and thorny path of entry into the world civilized family”, he said. “This is a very heavy blow and a loss for all of us. For me, as for the President, there is nothing heavier than when Georgian families overcome the death of loved ones. This is a tragedy in the first place for them, it is a heavy blow for the country and for each of us”, the president said.
Meanwhile, the author continues, Georgian public was stirred up by a video posted on YouTube a few days before the attack, entitled "Jihad against the Georgian army," in which the Afghan Taliban threatens jihad to the Georgian soldiers serving in Afghanistan, their families, and to the republic, promising revenge in the territory of Georgia.
However, the publication notes that some observers question the authenticity of these threats. Military expert Irakli Aladashvili said that after watching the video, he is more inclined to think it is not made by Taliban, as there is some difference, but, nevertheless, this matter should be explored. In any case, he said, the society should not panic because of this. Such materials can be propagated by anyone, and it is possible that the video could be made in Georgia. This is a common information war, and in the future similar movies may appear.
Members of one of Georgian online forums have noticed, the newspaper reports, that the code of the user who posted this video contains the letters GE, which means that the user is registered in Georgia. They see an urgent need to send a request to the site to get the IP address of the user, then going to Internet providers to identify a person who published a video.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Security Irakli Sesiashvili said that work is already underway to establish the identity of this user. "This is a very sensitive subject”, he said, “and I will refrain from commenting on the matter. But our security is prepared to carry out the activities that will reduce the risks," he said. Sesiashvili also suggested that perhaps, as he put it, it's definitely a provocation for a third force.
According to the press service of the administration of the President, Saakashvili is ready to convene a meeting of the Security Council in connection with these events, and he will prescribe the time of the meeting on the basis of the agreement between the president and prime minister.
***
The Republic Day in Ingushetia was celebrated not only by the festive events, but also by putting into operation of the largest social facility in the North Caucasus Federal District - Republican rehabilitation center for children with disabilities, according to the local newspaper "Serdalo."
This facility was built in the framework of the federal target program "Children of Russia"; the amount of about 520 million rubles was allocated for it, including equipping it with the latest medical equipment - about 80 million rubles. The author notes that the institution aims to give children and young people access to qualified medical-social, psychological, social, educational and legal assistance. He says that in the center there is a dormitory with 55 beds, 30 of which are accessible around the clock, as well as the administrative body, bath and laundry, catering department. The rehabilitation pavilion opened cabinets for physiotherapy , massage, gym, swimming pool, a carving workshop, a games room, a reading room, a medical library, a winter garden. Outside the Centre, it is planned to build a relaxation area, a corner for hippotherapy.
Onsite the office of the “Myal” charity fund will be located, the main purpose of which is to carry out charitable activities aimed at providing financial and other assistance to the disabled, the sick and the minors without parental care.
The center will operate as a day care and as a regular hospital room, where children can run rehabilitation therapy for a three-week course. According to the paper, it is a unique object that is unparalleled in any other regions of the North Caucasus, and putting it into operation allowed to create one hundred sixty new jobs.
The publication reports that, speaking at the opening ceremony, the head of Ingushetia, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, said that now with the opening of this object the parents do not have to take their sick children out of the subject, spending enormous effort and money on treatment. According to him, the Republican Rehabilitation Center will annually restore the health of more than 800 children diagnosed with cerebral palsy, muscular diseases, asthma and others.
Treatment and rehabilitation of young patients will be carried out not only by local physicians, but also by highly skilled specialists from Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, Stavropol and even Israel and China. Yevkurov expressed his gratitude to the leadership of the Health Ministry of the Russian Federation for all the support in the construction of the facility
