Konstantin Sokolov, a Russia-born American businessman and private equity investor from Chicago, has been appointed chairman of the new U.S. State Department TRIPP+ enterprise fund that will oversee the spending of more than $200 million intended to develop TRIPP across Armenia and Central Asia, according to a report by The Guardian. The fund will invest in Armenian energy and telecommunications, the same sectors where Sokolov holds major stakes. He is a beneficial owner of Viva Armenia, the country's largest telecommunications company, held through a company registered in Cyprus that controls 80 percent of the operator. He has also been publicly linked by RFE/RL to the purchase of Teghut, Armenia's second-largest...