Armenian President: Problems in Samtskhe-Javakheti Must not Have Ethnic Aspects

(Tbilisi, March 15, Civil Georgia) – The social and economic difficulties of the Armenians in Samtskhe-Javakheti [part of Georgia with a large ethnically Armenian population] are the result of the situation in Georgia on the whole, Armenian media sources report, quoting President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan.
 
Armenian President stated that there are social problems in the region and adding ethnic dimension to these problems is intolerable.

“We have established consistent contacts and mutual understanding with the Georgian leadership on this issue,” Kocharyan said.

The chairman of the Armenian organization Javakhk demands autonomy for the Samtskhe-Javakheti region.