“I can say one thing, the Minister of Defense has never been guided by requests. I do not think that a process of continuous requests has been held by Vazgen Sargsyan. I do not recall such a thing in this issue.”, – this is how the former Minister of Defense Andranik Kocharyan (1991-1995 years), in an interview with a Aravot.am, denied the allegation of Vazgen Manukyan saying that Vazgen Sargsyan has requested him for 3 times not to punish Suren Khachatryan and not to send him to the front as a penalty. Let’s remind you that the former Mayor of Goris Marz Samvel Harutyunyan had told that Suren Khachatryan, being a commander of conventional battalion, commenced an armed attack on the Mayor of Goris Marz and had captured the City Hall. To our questions, in his opinion, who has patronized Suren Khachatryan: Vazgen Manukyan or Vazgen Sargsyan, he replied, – “I do not think that there was an issue of patronizing Suren Khachatryan.
Just as the situation was that each and every person in the boundary line was very valuable, if there was any problem to solve. Neither Vazgen Manukyan nor Vazgen Sargsyan had a problem with sponsorship: all negative aspects of Suren Khachatryan were displayed later, especially after October 27. All the negative aspects of Suren Khachatryan are sponsored by Robert Kocharyan, when he was appointed as a governor. A man like him, simply, should not be entrusted so much power, because he has never had its merits.” According to Andranik Kocharyan, Vazgen Manukyan says things that the second opinion of those we can not hear from the other side, from Vazgen Sargsyan. “He says things that can not be said by Vazgen Sargsyan. To talk about Vazgen Sargsyan in his absence is simply unacceptable to me. Because no one can say whether Vazgen Sargsyan actually sponsored or not. I am sure that Vazgen Sargsyan with his kind and character could ever sponsored Suren Khachatryan’s lawlessness. It is out of question. To talk about anything that is done by Vazgen Sargsyan in his absence, I just think that it’s not appropriate. But there is one thing I would like to say that Vazgen Sargsyan by his nature could never support any anti-government action or illegality, and the attack on the City Hall by itself actually contains some anti-state activities. No one was obstructing Vazgen Manukyan to be guided by his powers as a Minister.”
Hripsime Jebejyan
