Armenian authorities manipulate public opinion amid worsening economic and export indicators - opposition MP

ArmInfo. While the ruling power in  the country measures public sentiment by the possibility of dousing  with water during Vardavar or by the number of visits to Sevan, the  pace of the country's economy and exports is deteriorating. This is  how opposition MP from the "Armenia" bloc Garnik Danielyan commented  on the statement of the head of the Ministry of Economy Gevorg  Papoyan that the issue of exporting Armenian cognac through Georgia  has been resolved.

In particular, as the MP recalled, the minister said that during the  day 27 cars loaded with bottled cognac left the Georgian customs  point of Gezi. Meanwhile, as Danielyan noted, as a result of the  current situation, economic entities have significantly reduced  production and export volumes.

"I recently learned from a representative of a cognac company that if  previously 1 truck loaded with cognac was sent to the border every  day, now the same number of trucks are sent within 1 month," the  oppositionist wrote on his Facebook page.

At the same time, he complained that the minister, wishing patience  to cognac producers, presents statistics on cars leaving the customs  point in Geza as evidence of the proper quality of Armenian cognac,  while Georgia, being a transit country, does not have any authority  to subject Armenian products to examination.  In this regard, the  deputy cited data from the Statistical Committee of Armenia,  according to which, compared to last year, the country has seen a  decrease in the export of cognac and alcoholic beverages.

"In addition, the relevant authorities have not given a full  explanation as to what led to the Georgian side preventing the export  of Armenian cognac to Russia for several months," the deputy added.

Danielyan noted that a similar situation has developed with liquefied  gas. According to the MP, while the Georgian checkpoint is making it  difficult for hundreds of trucks importing liquefied gas from Russia  to enter Armenia, its cost is increasing every day.

"This is an extremely bad trend, the consequences of which will have  irreversible consequences for our economy. We already have statistics  according to which industrial production has decreased by 12% in the  first half of 2025, and foreign trade - by 45%," the oppositionist  summarized.

For three months, Armenian cognac producers and their exporters have  been faced with artificial obstacles created by the Georgian side for  Armenian producers supplying cognac to third-country markets. Dozens  of Armenian trucks loaded with this drink have been idle at Georgian  customs for weeks. Due to delays in inspection, Armenian exporters  suffered large financial losses. The issue was partially resolved  after the Armenian delegation visited Tbilisi at the end of June this  year.

As ejc.am reported at the time, citing the director of the ACSES  analytical center, Haykaz Fanyan, the restrictions on the export of  Armenian cognac through the Armenian-Georgian border had a very  "banal" explanation. "According to some information, certain  officials want to establish some control over the distribution of  Armenian cognac. That is, instead of Armenian producers themselves  exporting cognac to Russia through Georgia, companies controlled by  the Georgians themselves would purchase this cognac and re-export it,  receiving a certain commission," Fanyan noted at the time.