Government

The official title of the country is the Republic of Armenia (RA) (Hayastani Hanrapetutyun).  

The highest executive authority is the president, who appoints a prime minister, who in turn appoints ministers to comprise the government .The president is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. The last election was held on February 19, 2008.The legislative branch of the Armenian democracy is the National Assembly (Azgayin Zhoghov). The National Assembly of Armenia has 135 elected Parliamentarians who are elected every five years. Its members represent several political parties. Parliamentarians submit laws for adoption by the National Assembly, while the President maintains veto power. If the National Assembly rejects the program delivered by the prime minister and Council of Ministers, then they are obliged to resign.

The constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted through a national referendum on July 5, 1995. All citizens age 18 and older have the right to vote.

Armenia has established diplomatic relations with 125 countries. Armenia is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and at the same time enjoys good relations with the United States and the European Union. In October 1994 the country joined the Partnership for Peace program, which provides for limited military cooperation with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Armenia continues to strive toward development and reform and most recently was admitted to the Council of Europe.