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[MosJan]

RUSSIA DECLINES ARMENIAN PROPOSAL

YEREVAN, AUGUST 23, ARMENPRESS: Gagik Mkrtchian, head of a trade and economic development ministry department dealing with jewelry and goldsmith industry, said Russian finance ministry has declined an Armenian proposal asking for a permission to re-export fifteen percent of raw diamonds it receives from Russia.
Mkrtchian said the Russian ministry cited various reasons to turn down their proposal, one of which was that re-exported Armenia diamonds could compete with Russian diamonds at foreign markets. Mkrtchian said Armenian companies have received 150,000 carats of Russian raw diamonds out of 450,000 carts envisaged for Armenia for 2005 by an intergovernmental agreement. However, he said, some small companies in Armenia are not now able to buy Russian diamonds after Russian Alrosa, the main supplier of raw diamonds, raised its prices.
"I think Russia would not like to lose a market that is able to process annually 1 million carat of raw diamonds in a friendly country,' he said. Raw diamonds are also supplied to Armenia by Belgium and Israel.