YEREVAN. – There are only 18 days left until the end of 2019. And have the authorities just realized that we need extra loans? Gevorg Gorgisyan, the secretary of the opposition Bright Armenia faction in the National Assembly (NA), said this at the December 12 special sitting of the NA, addressing Deputy Minister of Finance Armen Hayrapetyan.

The government has submitted four loan agreements—for a total of more than 120mn euros—to the NA, which are expected to be received by the end of the year. These loans are needed to cover the 2019 state budget deficit.

In response to the criticism, Armen Hayrapetyan said that the signing of these loan agreements depended not only on the Armenian government, and that negotiations had been held with international donors during this period, which led to delays. Hayrapetyan also informed that the loan agreements were finally agreed in November, but after that they had to go through the Constitutional Court and other procedures as well.