Suspension of trade with Turkey will harm Armenia's economy - says economist (video)
Armenian exports to Turkey totaled $ 142 000 in the first quarter of 2016. In the same period, the country imported goods in the amount of $ 24 million. Economist Vilen Khachatryan is against the ban on the import or export of Turkish goods. He says it will only have a negative impact on Armenian businesses. "If we completely halt our foreign trade with Turkey, both importers and exporters will suffer losses as a result. The former will lose about $137-240 million while the latter over $1,5 million. Besides, Turkey will simply disappear as our import partner. Alternately, we can terminate the trade with Turkey only partially, which means we can stop either import or export but if we decide to stop imports, Turkey will immediately suspend exports,” the economist said. Mr Khachatryan predicts what might happen if Armenia decides not to stop trade with Turkey. “First of all, let me speak about public perception. People in Armenia believe that Turkey is sending its sends revenues to Azerbaijan. The latter buys weapons with the money to fight against Armenia.” The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts that Turkey's GDP will total $721 billion in 2016 and $905 billion in 2021. Azerbaijan’s GDP will amount to $ 63 billion in 2016 and $87 billion in 2021. Turkey receives about 5 million dollars from its trade with Armenia, hence the thesis that Turkey finances Azerbaijan to purchase weapons and use them against Armenia cannot correspond to reality. Turkey’s budget of $700 billion is enough for these expenses. Azerbaijan’s budget exceeds that of Armenia 6-7 times, while Turkey’s budget – 70 times.
