a rural settlement within the Meghri Municipality. The village currently has two kindergartens, one secondary school, one art school, a cultural palace, two libraries and a football stadium. Geography Agarak is located in semi-desert zone and is surrounded by rocky mountains with high cliffs and deep canyons with an average altitude of 660m. It has a cold desert climate (BWk) according to the Köppen climate classification system. The vicinity of the village is designated as a Prime Butterfly Area, having number of rare and endangered species of butterflies, such as Gegenes nostrodamus, Zegris eupheme, Pieris krueperi, Chazara briseis, Cupido argiades, Pseudophilotes vicrama, and others. Economy It is an important centre for non-ferrous metallurgy. In 1853, a copper-molybdenum deposit was discovered, and in 1958 a copper-molybdenum plant was opened in the village, which includes a quarry and a processing plant. The Agarak copper deposit and smeltery have been operating since 1963. The copper-molybdenum industry in Agarak has been recovered since 2001. Currently, the copper-molybdenum plant secures around 1200 jobs for the population of Agarak, which makes around 25% of the entire population of Agarak. The Agarak Copper-Molybdenum mine complex produces copper and molybdenum concentrate through bulk-selective flotation recovery of molybdenum and copper minerals. It was fully acquired by GeoProMining company in 2007. The Meghri custom house and the border checkpoint with Iran are situated in the territory of Agarak. The construction of the Armenian section of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline started in Agarak on 30 November 2004. The pipeline started operations on 20 December 2006. Tourism from Iran is a growing industry in Agarak. Many of the Iranian tourists stop in Meghri and Agarak to go to the restaurants, cafes, and stores. The Persian language is in high demand in Agarak with frequent Persian-language signs, and many of the locals engaged in services are proficient in colloquial Persian. Demographics The population of Agarak since 1908 is as follows: References Populated places in Syunik Province Cities and towns built in the Soviet Union Populated places established in 1949 Armenia–Iran border crossings