YEREVAN.- Armenia annually allocates $1 million for preservation of monuments, unlike neighboring Georgia where $9 million is granted, said head of research centre for cultural and historical heritage, Armenia’s Culture Ministry, Hakob Simonyan. The expert told journalists $1 million is not sufficient for preservation of monuments.

Nowadays, there are 24,500 monuments in Armenia, said official from culture ministry Vladimir Poghosyan.

“We need to provide maximum financing for activities aimed at preserving the most important of them,” he stressed adding that churches and temples are among the most important monuments having historic and architectural value.

Poghosyan said the Yerevan Municipality started demolishing monuments after the list of architectural and historic monuments of Yerevan was rewritten.

“The entire old Yerevan was demolished. A hotel was built to replace the building of a City Council, it is absurd,” he said adding that former officials were responsible for this.