During an interview given to “Aravot” Seyran Ohanyan, the Defense Minister of the Republic of Armenia, speaking of the demand made by the NGOs to voice the problems of the army and acting transparently in the eyes of the army command, actually repeated the statement made by Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Armenia Vladimir Gasparyan last week. S. Ohanyan stated “if there are people who make illegal actions against the army with their grants are unhealthy initiatives and cannot be tolerated by the army command.” The Minister also stated “at the end of the day, the displeasure of a few people demanding too much information from the Defense Ministry is more favorable, than threatening the state security interest” and added “it is hard to understand those who perceive criticizing the army as a custom and means of asserting or financing themselves. Unfortunately, though the critics in the latter group are few, however they make a big stink and try to cause unhealthy public mood. I am under the impression that they are guided by the principle ‘the worse, the better’. If I can close my eyes on what they do just humanly, I have no right to neglect the developments that can threaten the mutual trust between the society and the army, as the official responsible for the fighting capability of the army. It is an issue of national security and those who will try to interfere in the organic ties between the army and the society will be unavoidably held responsible in the legal framework.”
Human rights advocate Artur Sakunts, the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor Office coordinator and a member of the “Army in Reality” initiative, responding to Seyran Ohanyan’s statement, said, “Unfortunately, one must reassert that the Ministry of Defense, namely the Minister, publicly supports Vova Gasparyan’s assessments against the NGOs that put forward demands to reveal shady business and killings in the armed forces, to find and hold responsible those officials involved in the corruption. And that means that the Ministry of Defense itself is against the army, trying to veil the crimes taking place in the armed forces. It is a pity. On the other hand, the Minister must answer the question how efficiently the grants received in the framework of NATO-Armenia ‘Partnership for Peace’ program are used and whether there is ‘grant-seeking’ here or not. It is one thing when an NGO receives a grant, and it is quite a different thing when the state bodies related to state defense and national security receive grants. We want to see how efficient those grants, aimed at reforming the army, are used, when killings continue in the army, when corruption in the armed forces is not revealed.”
