YEREVAN - Armenia is eager to boost trade links with Egypt to be on a par with their "excellent" political relations, a senior Armenian official said Thursday. "Political ties between the two countries are at a top level. Unfortunately, economic co-operation has yet to cope with this political level as the bilateral trade exchange is still meagre," said Armen Gevorkian, Armenia's Deputy Prime Minister. Armenia, which gained indepnedence from the former Soviet Union in 1991, had its first embassy in the Arab world in Egypt. Almost eighteen years after the establishment of Egyptian-Armenian diplomatic ties, the bilateral trade exchange was estimated at 7 million dollars last year. "To my knowledge, there are no obstacles to the promotion of this trade in view of the co-operation agreements signed between the two countries," Gevorkian, who heads the Armenian side at a joint intergovernmental economic commission with Egypt, told a group of Egyptian journalists in Yerevan. Egypt has got a large Armenian community since the early 19th century. Thousands of Armenian tourists fly to Egypt's holiday spots. "We seek to hold a meeting of the Egyptian-Armenian (Intergovernmental) Economic Commission soon as it did not meet for long," said the Armenian official. During the upcoming meeting of the commission, expected in the first half of next year, officials from both sides will review the steps taken by the two governments to enhance bilateral relations. "We will also explore new prospects for bilateral co-operation as Armenia has great potential in several fields starting from tourism to information technology," he added, citing a recent visit to Yerevan from officials of Egypt's governmental Fund for Technical Co-operation with the Independent States of the Commonwealth. "We thank this fund for arranging courses for Armenian specialists." Ambassador Sumia Saad is the secretary-general fund affiliated to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry. According to Gevorkian, Egyptian big and medium-scale companies are interested in launching projects in Armenia. Landlocked in the Caucasus region of Europe, Armenia has borders with Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Iran. Its borders with Azerbaijan and Turkey are closed due to conflicts."I think Egypt's big market can be good for the Armenian products. Recently we have discussed the possibility of operating a direct air route between Egypt and Armenia. But the issue remains like a chicken-or-egg puzzle. While some people think it is necessary to launch this route in order to activate bilateral economic links, others believe that first there should be strong trade exchange in order to make this route economically feasible," said Gevorkian through an interpreter. Reaching out to the Arab world, Armenia has opened embassies in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. "We have Armenian communities in all Arab Gulf countries. But these countries have no complete picture on our economic potential. When we start presenting a real picture on us, this ice will start melting. And that's what we have embarked on." Last November, Armenian and UAE bussinesspeople met for the first time. "We are in a good position to export products such as farming goods and drinking water. Over recent years, we have gained experience in dealing with the outside world, especially the Arab countries." Armenia is trying hard to tout its potential in the information technology and healthcare sectors to attract people from the neighbouring and Arab countries. "We hope Armenia will grow as a hub for information technology in our region," said Gevorkian.
