Lawmaker Babken Tunyan, the Deputy Chairman of the Economic Affairs Committee of the Armenian Parliament, told ARMENPRESS that the ban wasn’t delivering its desired effect, and despite the embargo many importers were utilizing circumvent ways to bring Turkish products into the Armenian market.
“If we look at this issue from a patriotic perspective, what matters is - why is there demand for Turkish products in Armenia? If we were to compare with the situation we had during the 44-day war when everyone was boycotting Turkish products, now we must understand why people are again willing to buy Turkish products. If there is demand for some product, that product will find its market and will reach its consumer, be it in circumvent ways or at higher costs. That’s why it’s not right to artificially do something. If we put aside the emotional part, we must evaluate its appropriateness from an economic perspective,” Tunyan said.
Tunyan, an economist, further noted that the ban was anyway temporary and partial, with only finished goods being prohibited. Moreover, the list of banned products was revised several times because it turned out there was no alternative in the market.
“Economically, unfortunately this ban led to a situation where Turkish products were entering Armenia through different ways, because carrying out customs administration and control is practically impossible, and this simply led to prices of clothes, househo...
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