YEREVAN. – The Armenian State Migration Agency will issue on Thursday the data on arrivals in and departures from Armenia in the first quarter of this year, Agency Chief Gagik Yeganyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

In Yeganyan’s words, emigration is disturbing, but we cannot say there are abrupt changes as compared to the previous years. According to him, now, 25,000-30,000 people leave Armenia every year, but the precise data will become clear in fall.  

“There is no sharp increase in emigration; there is a stable, a certain level of emigration. Emigration has always been and it will [continue to] be,” he said.  

Reflecting on the opposition Armenian National Congress bloc MPs’ statements with respect to a growing emigration, the Armenian State Migration Agency head noted that these statements are about passenger flows and that a distinction should be made between a passenger and a migrant. As per Yeganyan, if every migrant is a passenger, every passenger is not necessarily a migrant.  

“Our data do not reflect revolutionary, shocking changes in the emigration situation,” he concluded.