September 8, 2009 - 14:59 AMT
Armenian villages in Kvemo Kartli nearly assimilated
Besides Javakhk, Armenia has problems with the border with Georgia. But curiously enough, no one speaks of it, an Armenian expert said.

"The problem is with six Armenian villages in Kvemo Kartli region, where Georgian frontier guards prevent peasants from moving around freely and farming. Recently, several villagers were detained for alleged violation of the border," Eduard Abrahamyan, expert at Mitq analytical center, told a news conference today.

He reminded that these villages were a part of Armenia from 1920 to 1935. "In 1937, the soviet rule decreed that these Armenian lands should be annexed to Georgia, because there is no road linking them to Armenia. As a matter of fact, these villages are a part of Lori region and there is a country road through Jiliza Armenian settlement," he said.

Abrahamyan said the problem can be resolved only if Armenia demands the villages be re-annexed to RA. "Otherwise, surrounded by Azeri settlements, these will not be Armenian villages in several years," he said.