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YEREVAN. – Acting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said he cannot comment on the dismissal of former Artsakh Defense Minister Levon Mnatsakanyan by virtue of circumstances.
However, he added that the concerns over the impact that changes might have on the combat readiness of the Artsakh army “are very bad remarks addressed to our army”.
Former defense minister Michael Harutyunyan
On July 3, 2018, a criminal case was initiated by the head of the investigative group on the criminal case on the events of March 1-2, 2008, in Yerevan, in accordance with the Article 1 of the Article 300.1 of the RA Criminal Code, the chief executive officer of the executive body, the minister of defense and other persons for violating the constitutional order of the Republic of Armenia from February 23, 2008 till March 2, 2008 s SIS press service informed “Armenpress” about this.
The criminal case has been merged with the criminal case on the events of 1 and 2 March 2008.
On July 3, 2018, on the basis of sufficient evidence obtained by the preliminary investigation, a decision was made to convey the former Minister of Defense of the Republic of Armenia, Colonel General Mikael Harutyunyan as part of Article 1 of Article 300.1 of the RA Criminal Code, has overthrowed the constitutional order with the prior consent of individuals.
Thus, it was found out that during the preparation and conduct of the election of the President of the Republic of Armenia held on February 19, 2008, such violations were filed, which, according to the majority of the society, violated the Article 4 of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, the basic principles that resulted in people being deprived of the opportunity to exercise their power through free elections.
Large-scale violations committed by non-governmental organizations, different human rights organizations and citizens have been attributed to the incumbent President Robert Kocharyan and incumbent Prime Minister, incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan, and the majority of the public has been fired since February 20, 2008 at Yerevan’s Liberty Square Massive public peaceful events, rallies, and round-the-clock rallies of thousands of citizens supporting the other presidential candidates were organized. handles.
Discontent in the wider public and the involvement of new people in peaceful assemblies have caused serious concern to the current authorities. After a series of police raids and calls to impede the rallies of seemingly unlawful assemblies, a number of high-ranking officials, including RA Minister of Defense Mikael Harutyunyan, carried out peaceful rallies aimed at overthrowing the constitutional order of the Republic of Armenia actions which have been expressed in fact by removing the provisions of Articles 1 to 5 of the Constitution and the provisions of Article 6, termination of their validity in the legal system.
Thus, RA Defense Minister Mikael Harutyunyan and other officials violated Article 8.2 of the RA Constitution, which states that “the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia ensure the security, defense and territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia, the inviolability of its borders. The Armed Forces maintain neutrality in political matters and are under civilian control “, Article 55 § 13 of the Constitution states that in case of an armed attack on the Republic, its immediate threat or war, the President may declare martial law and only after the declaration of a martial law can a decision be taken of the use of the armed forces.
Armenian Defense Minister Mikael Harutyunyan and other officials, in violation of the Constitution of Armenia, have confirmed the martial law in Armenia, the armed forces used political issues against citizens participating in peaceful demonstrations.
Particularly, on February 23, 2008, Armenian Defense Minister Mikael Harutyunyan signed a clandestine order No. 0038 on the execution of the tasks set by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, in which peaceful demonstrators were described as “political” destabilizing the situation. forces “, and the whole staff of the RA Armed Forces was moved to the barracks to ensure the” normal development of the country “. Officer groups were set up with tabular guns. By the decree, the Armed Forces have also been created with high mobility and able to operate effectively in complicated situations by armed units equipped with firearms. It was instructed to replenish these units with more trained, psychologically stable employees.
The Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Armenia
Davit Tonoyan
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan says he will appoint Davit Tonoyan, the acting minister of emergency situation, to serve as defense minister.
“Today David Tonoyan will be appointed defense minister. Other appointments will be made soon also”, the Prime Minister told reporters.
Pashinyan said acting minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan will not continue her tenure.
“At this moment we don’t have a plan on making changes in the government structure and we won’t even manage to physically, however relations with the Diaspora are very important. We will do everything for this ministry to function not only within the framework of Diaspora and preservation of Armenian identity, but also to be the main ring in organizing repatriation and contributing to repatriation”, he said.
Tonoyan previously served as deputy minister of defense from 2010-2017. In 2017, he was appointed minister of emergency situations.
Vigen Sargsyan was appointed defense minister in 2016. Sargsyan recently said he will not continue tenure in the new government.
Greece’s defense minister described Turkey as an enemy
Greece’s defense minister described Turkey on Wednesday as an “enemy that continues to provoke us” and said he had ordered the deployment of more military personnel to islands in the eastern Aegean Sea. Defense Minister Panos Kammenos said 7,000 service members were being moved to the islands and a border area in northeast Greece amid a spike in tension between the two NATO allies, the Washington Post reports.
“If they have the guts, let them dare to challenge one inch of our territory,” Kammenos said while attending a reservist exercise on the island of Ikaria. “The Greeks, united, will crush them.”
There was no immediate comment from Turkish officials.
Greece and Turkey remain at odds over air and sea boundaries in the Aegean Sea, as well as oil and gas drilling off the coast of nearby Cyprus, which has been divided into ethically Greek and Turkish sides for decades.
The March 1 arrest of two Greek soldiers who strayed into Turkish territory while on a border patrol has further strained relations between the two countries. The soldiers remain detained in a Turkish prison.
Armenian delegation led by Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan arrived in Canada in the evening of November 14 to participate in the 2017 UN Peacekeeping Defense Ministerial in Vancouver.
This conference, which is the largest gathering of Defense Ministers dedicated to UN Peacekeeping, features more than 500 representatives from 80 countries.
Before the opening of the conference, the Armenian delegation, together with representatives of the Armenian community of Vancouver, paid tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims.
Karabakh Defense Minister Levon Mntasakanyan
STEPANAKERT. – Continuing its destructive policy, the military and political leadership of Azerbaijan has taken the tension on the border to a qualitatively new level. Karabakh Defense Minister Levon Mntasakanyan said the aforementioned today, summing up 2015.
According to him, this year was marked by a steady growth of tension on the border. The Minister also said that the adversary used tanks and artillery for the first time since the conclusion of the ceasefire, parallelly continuing the infiltration attempts.
All the attempts of the adversary were driven back, causing casualties on the Azerbaijani side, Mnastakanyan said.
“Unfortunately, our soldiers heroically fell in carrying out their service duties. Hats off to them and let them rest in peace,” he said.
The Minister also added that this year the link between the army and the society has enhanced, as well as replenishment of weaponry and technology has been carried out.
“Today we can say that the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Defense Army has completed its main mission, namely the insurance of the security of its people and NKR,” Levon Mnatsakanyan said.
SDHP (SDHK) member, former deputy minister of defense Vahan Shirkhanyan guest in Hayatsq press club
YEREVAN. – news.am report Former Deputy Defense Minister and former Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia, Vahan Shirkhanyan, on Saturday was detained within the framework of the criminal case which the National Security Service (NSS) is investigating.
Shirkhanyan is suspected of partaking in the criminal association formed by Artur Vardanyan, working for it, and having a specific role and commitment, the NSS Press Center informed.
On November 25, the NSS Armenia rendered ineffective, in capital city Yerevan, a criminal gang that is suspected of plotting grave crimes.
The NSS had received an operative information, according to which Armenian citizen Artur Vardanyan (born in 1981), who lived in Spain since 1997 and who resides in Armenia since 2015, had set up and led a criminal gang with the objective of committing serious crimes.
To implement the aforementioned objective, the gang had unlawfully acquired a large quantity of weapons and ammunition, which were hidden in a house that was rented in Yerevan.
During the NSS search that was conducted at the house—and jointly with the police—automatic rifles, pistols, grenade launchers, grenades, explosives and explosive devices, communications equipment, and several other types of ammunition were found, and all gang members were detained.
A criminal case was launched into this incident, and a respective investigation is in progress.
Iraqi Defense Minister Khaled al-Obeidi (C) delivers a speech during a press conference in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on September 6, 2015. (© AFP)
The Iraqi defense minister has escaped an assassination attempt in the country’s embattled northern province of Salahuddin, where unidentified militants opened fire on his convoy.
A source in the Iraqi Defense Ministry, requesting not to be named, told Arabic-language al-Sumaria satellite television network that Khalid al-Obeidi was on a visit to the Tal Abu Jarad area, which lies north of the provincial capital city of Tikrit, on Monday, when a sniper opened fire.
The source added one of Obeidi’s guards was wounded in the assault, but the minister himself was unharmed.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. However, Iraqi officials usually blame such assaults on Daesh Takfiri terrorists.
Obeidi was touring the area to watch over military operations in the oil-rich city of Baiji, located some 210 kilometers (130 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad.
Daesh kidnaps over 100 Iraqi children
Meanwhile, members of the Daesh Takfiri militant group have abducted more than 100 children from various districts of the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.
The spokesman for the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Mosul, Saeed Mamouzini, said Daesh extremists have kidnapped 127 minors, aged between 11 and 15, over the past few days in the city, located some 400 kilometers (248 miles) north of Baghdad.
He added that the Takfiris have shifted the abductees to their training camps on the outskirts of Mosul, where they are being forced to undergo training to carry out acts of terror.
Separately, Daesh militants abducted 35 civilians in al-Khan village, located on the outskirts of Hawijah city, on Monday, alleging that they had burnt the terrorists’ black flag and called on Daesh elements to leave the area.
The terrorists later moved the abductees to an unknown location, and there is no information about their fate and whereabouts.
Gruesome violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since the Daesh Takfiris launched an offensive in June 2014, and took control of portions of Iraqi territory.
The militants have been committing vicious crimes against all ethnic and religious communities in Iraq, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians and others.
Units of army soldiers and volunteer fighters are seeking to win back militant-held regions in joint operations.
Source: presstv.com
Armenian armed forces defend the borders perfectly and maintain pressure to silence the enemy. Declaration made on August 13 at a meeting in the government, by Seyran Ohanyan, Armenian Defense Minister. S. Ohanian said that the Armenian army completely controls the borders of the Republic of Armenia and those of the Republic of Nagorno Karabagh. During the first European Olympic Games in Baku declined tension at the borders, but after these games, a significant growth of violations of the cease-fire by Azerbaijan was observed. “They opened fire not only by conventional weapons, but by guns and grenade launchers. Our neighbors are trying with this to gain some diplomatic dividends. In recent days, was recorded intrusion attempts. Armenian armed forces have conducted prevention operations. At our requests for dialogue, the enemy responds with a rise in tension. The units of our armed forces know fully respond to the situation imposed on them and they do it perfectly. In recent days we have had the loss of a soldier (…) we are ready not only to defend but also undertake prevention operations, “says Ohanian.
Krikor Amirzayan
STEPANAKERT. – President of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR; Artsakh), Bako Sahakyan, on Monday signed a decree on relieving Lieutenant General Movses Hakobyan from the position of the NKR Minister of Defense and Commander of the NKR Defense Army.
With another presidential decree, Lieutenant General Levon Mnatsakanyan has been appointed to the aforesaid positions.
Sahakyan also signed a decree on awarding Hakobyan with the Saint Gregory the Illuminator Order for his exclusive services rendered to Artsakh.
The President on Wednesday visited the NKR Ministry of Defense, and introduced the new defense minister to the command staff of the army.
President Sahakyan also extended his appreciation to the now former defense minister for the extensive work he carried out. Sahakyan stressed that combat-readiness of the NKR Defense Army reached a new level, and numerous matters were resolved under Hakobyan’s command.
Sahakyan noted with certainty that Movses Hakobyan will continue using his rich track-record and knowledge in his new and accountable position as Deputy Chief of Armenia’s General Staff of the Armed Forces.
The NKR President, speaking about Levon Mnatsakanyan, qualified him as one of the most experienced generals with a profound knowledge, with authority and respect in the army, and who has shown his worth in all positions he has assumed.
Commander-in-Chief of the NKR armed forces expressed confidence that Mnatsakanyan will work with the same zeal as Artsakh’s Defense Minister and Defense Army commander, directing all his skills and abilities toward strengthening the army and steadily raising its efficiency.
The Minister of Defense of Armenia, Seyran Ohanyan, and several other officials also attended this meeting.
