Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited the Ministry of Defense on the occasion of Army Day - the 29th anniversary of formation of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia, where he met with the senior staff of the Armed Forces.

Participants in the meeting first paid tribute to the memory of all Armenian servicemen, volunteers and freedom-fighters who sacrificed their lives for the sake of the homeland. Then, Prime Minister Pashinyan delivered congratulatory remarks, in which he stated:

“Honorable Minister of Defense,
Generals and Officers,
Dear participants,

The Armenian army, the Republic of Armenia, Artsakh, the Armenian people have gone through a severe, cruel ordeal that had to do with the 44-day war. I want to emphasize that in this environment of bitterness we should not forget the unparalleled heroism and the high deeds that our soldiers, officers, generals, volunteers showed during the 44-day war for the defense of the homeland. Indeed, today we must appreciate the sacrifices made by our soldiers, officers, generals and volunteers during the war. We must be able to eye the future with optimism. Of course, today we must ask ourselves what we have failed to do on order to ensure high-level fighting capacity for our country and the army.

These are questions that we must get answers to, of course, we must face these questions and this is our most important task to come. By the way, I would like to state that this task is high on the agenda of the Ministry of Defense; this task is recorded as a priority agenda item by the command staff of the General Staff of the Armed Forces; efforts are underway to that effect.

Servicing our country’s security challenges and ensuring high-level fighting capacity for our country and the army largely depend on the effectiveness of this work. One thing is clear, as always, the security of the Republic of Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian people is an absolute priority today; the number one tool to ensure proper security is the Armenian Army, the Armed Forces of Armenia.

We must also state the obvious interconnectivity between economic, legal, political processes and the combat efficiency of the Armed Forces, because the Armed Forces are not a standalone island; they bear the imprint of all influences, the positive-negative impact of those phenomena that we have in our country, starting from the culture of economic activity in terms of paying taxes. After all, what is our army based on? What does our army rely on, including the resources that are collected in the economy by the citizens and are given to the army through the budget to ensure its goals and needs, and so on?

We must re-evaluate these challenges, our agenda; we must formulate new approaches, new perceptions and understandings on this agenda, which must guarantee the security of our country. The modern world is not organized in a way to allow individual countries to ensure comprehensive security on their own. Even the most powerful countries in the world are seeking alliances and set the security of their countries in the logic of mutual aid.

The Republic of Armenia makes no exception in this regard; we must continue to develop our allied relations with our main security partner, the Russian Federation. We must continue to develop our relations in the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, and ensure the security of our country and people through international mechanisms. But in any case, I wish to record that first and foremost, we are the ones to ensure our country’s security. We must do this work tirelessly, without depression, without pessimism. We must be optimistic about building our future security environment.

On the occasion of Army Day, I would like to congratulate all Armenian servicemen, soldiers, generals, volunteers and freedom-fighters whose activities formed the basis of the Armenian Army. I wish to thank all our servicemen for their selfless service. Today and yesterday their service was too difficult and continues to be difficult in all respects. Moreover, many new challenges arose after the war, but even before the war the profession of a soldier and military service was not easy in the Republic of Armenia as it was associated with numerous hardships.

It is a great honor to be a soldier, especially in the Republic of Armenia, but we must admit that it is a great challenge for everyone. It is a great challenge not only for the servicemen themselves, but also for their families.

I would like to thank all the families of servicemen for their patience, endurance, for standing firmly by their loved ones, who render their sacred service to the Republic of Armenia.

Dear Generals,
Dear Officers,

Once again, I would like to thank you for dedication, sacrifices and services rendered to the Republic of Armenia. And I want to express hope and confidence that your services will be appreciated.

Let no one think that I claim that the service of the military, like that of all of us, is flawless and perfect. Not everything is like that. There is no such service not only in Armenia, but elsewhere, in general. Nevertheless, in order to build the future, we must be able to value the services truly worthy of appreciation; we must be determined, have the courage to face our shortcomings, to diagnose and eradicate them.

I am confident that our efforts will result in the solution of our problems, in the situation we have all dreamed about. We will definitely live up to the task, which is to ensure the security of Armenia and Artsakh. This was our priority yesterday and it is our priority today. Thank you.”

The problems and challenges faced by the Armed Forces were discussed following the Prime Minister’s remarks. Further action and consistent steps to address them were outlined during the consultation.