A company owned by Vahe Makunts, brother of Armenian Ambassador to the U.S. Lilit Makunts, has been fined AMD 300,000 for illegally mining sand in Armenia’s Armavir Province.

It’s a lucrative business in Armenia that has attracted the attention of private investors and government officials.  

X Farming is one of several companies in which Vahe Makunts owns shares.

In 2023, X Mining, another company he owns, was cited by Hetq as mining sand before receiving a government permit.

The companies in question were established in 2018. after the change of government in Armenia.

Vahe Makunts' business partners include the brother-in-law of Gagik Jhangiryan, a former Military Prosecutor and Deputy Prosecutor General of Armenia. Another is the former Deputy Minister of Trade and Economic Development.

Lilit Makunts rose to political prominence in Armenia after the 2018 “Velvet Revolution” led by current Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. She served as Minister of Culture (2018-2019) and was elected to the parliament from Nikol Pashinyan’s My Step alliance in 2021. In August of that year, she was appointed Armenia’s Ambassador to the United States for a four-year term.