YEREVAN. – Zhoghovurd (People) newspaper has found out that the Armenian authorities spent 80 million drams—or more than 160 thousand US dollars—from the state budget, to organize and hold the three-day 6th Armenia-Diaspora Pan-Armenian Conference in Armenia’s capital city of Yerevan, according to the newspaper.

“This amount was mainly spent on rental of technical equipment, design, preparation of printing materials, the participants’ reception at [lavish] Pharaon restaurant, and other similar objectives.

“But the delegates paid by their own means for the costs (…) of visiting Armenia and their stay here.

“But it is hard to say what will be remembered from this conference if everything does not go beyond the level of speeches,” wrote Zhoghovurd.