Chairman of the Yerkrapah Volunteers’ Union, Lieutenant-General, an NA MP Manvel Grigoryan has sent a message of condolence pertaining to downing of Artsakh Defense Army’s Mi-24 by Azerbaijani ZU, in which he warned the political and military leadership of Azerbaijan that our patience is not infinite and inexhaustible. “Rest assured that if you try to impose a war on us, if you strive to instigate similar provocations, you will be severely punished, again as in May 1994, you will kneel down and beg for ceasefire, but this time, the fights will be held in Baku.”
In conversation with Aravot.am, in response to our question of what is your opinion about this and similar statements that are often heard in the social networks that we will be going to Baku to shed a sea of blood, the YVU member Vardan Devrikyan replied, “Pertaining to General Manvel Grigoryan’s statement, it should not be viewed one-sided. His words clearly contain such a thing. He says that when the presidents of Armenia and Artsakh or the armed forces assign a task, after that, Baku would kneel and ask for a cease-fire, he does not say that he will enroll a team and go to war. I, too, as a Yerkrapah member, am in the same system. I cannot tell to what extent my actions would be effective, but if the President of Armenia and Armenia’s military-political leadership put this issue forwards, the next participant after the army, the first attacking force is the Yerkrapah. The words said by General Manvel in this regard are definitely true and his words are within this context. The same thing can also be said by me, but it could sound like an empty word, because I neither have the information nor the strength have, nor the influence. There are people whose word has weight. If he says, he would do it. Any politician can reach from here to Baku just lying. It’s all the same, he does not bear responsibility. Such people speak in the third person, they say, we must do it. Whereas, General Manvel speaks in the first person, he is a doer, and he bears responsibility, both morally and for honor. His word is a word of a statesman; it is not the word of other self-determined people who say that we need to answer by 1 for 10. General Manvel announced that if such a task were assigned to us, we would go for it. None of us wants war, moreover does Manvel Grigoryan.”
Vardan Devrikyan said that they had met with the General lately, and currently, YVU is discussing this latest provocation by Azerbaijan. “Those who have faced the death are the least who want war. But, war is something like a dog. When the dog feels that you are afraid of him, he attacks and bites you, but when he feels that you are not afraid of him, he comes and licks your feet. We need to be in this situation. Not willing for the war, we need to be ready for it and not fear. If anyone rejoice saying let the war be, he either is abnormal and crazy, or has seen war movies. And the people who have gone through the losses of the war and have experienced it on themselves, these people at the same time know how to avoid the war and not being afraid of the war.”
Hripsime JEBEJYAN
