Trade Barriers of the Economy of the Republic of Armenia: a Challenge of a Single Nation or the Geopolitical Reality of the Region?

The thesis explores barriers to trade of Armenia with the world, addressing every trade agreement of Armenia, the local legislation pertaining to trade and statistics related to them. It then analyzes and assesses the effects of the Turkish embargo on Armenia, followed by insight into the EAEU and its role as a trade barrier in the economic life of Armenia. The thesis progresses to scrutinize the untold reality of the Armenian economy – the corruption, improper implementation of law, incompetence and infrastructure as factors affecting competitiveness and productivity of Armenia on the global market. The thesis concludes with recognition of challenges posed by the Turkish embargo and the EAEU membership as barriers to trade, while juxtaposing them to the issues that overshadow them, in the form of flaws in the economic environment and infrastructure of Armenia, concluding that the latter have much more weight in determining the economic condition of the country, then the apparent trade barriers.