Armenia Great Destination For Travelers

Armenia: Great Destination for travelers

Summary: Armenian leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Muslim Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated region, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the s by Moscow. Armenia & Azerbaijan began fighting over the area in ; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in .

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Article Body: Armenian leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Muslim Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated region, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the s by Moscow. Armenia & Azerbaijan began fighting over the area in ; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in .

Armenia prides itself on being the first nation to formally adopt Christianity (early th century). Despite periods of autonomy, over the centuries Armenia came under the sway of various empires including the Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Persian, & Ottoman. It was incorporated into Russia in & the USSR in .

By May , when a cease-fire took hold, Armenian forces held not only Nagorno-Karabakh but also a significant portion of Azerbaijan proper. The economies of both sides have been hurt by their inability to make substantial progress toward a peaceful resolution. Turkey imposed an economic blockade on Armenia & closed the common border because of the Armenian occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh & surrounding areas.

Geography

Government: Republic

Armenia is located in the southern Caucasus & is the smallest of the former Soviet republics. It is bounded by Georgia on the north, Azerbaijan on the east, Iran on the south, & Turkey on the west. Contemporary Armenia is a fraction of the size of ancient Armenia. A land of rugged mountains & extinct volcanoes, its highest point is Mount Aragats, , ft (, m).

Prime Minister: Andranik Markarian ()

President: Robert Kocharian ()

Area: , sq mi (, sq km)

Population ( est.): ,, (growth rate: -.%); (Armenian, %; others, Kurds, Ukrainians, & Russians); birth rate: ./; kid mortality rate: ./; life expectancy: .; density per sq mi:

Capital & largest city: Yerevan, ,, (metro. area), ,, (city proper)

Other large cities: Vanadzor, ,; Gyumri (Leninakan), ,; Abovian, ,

Monetary unit: Dram

Language: Armenian %, Russian %, other %

Religion: Armenian Apostolic %, other Christian %, Yezidi %

Ethnicity/race: Armenian %, Russian %, Azeri %, other (mostly Yezidi Kurds) % (). Note: as of the end of , virtually all Azeris had emigrated from Armenia