Already former head of presidential staff, Vigen Sargsyan, lately, was appointed Minister of Defense by Serzh Sargsyan’s decree. Thus, Serzh Sargsyan takes the defense sector under his everyday control. Again, the Ministry of Defence will be headed by a civilian. Some may not like this but the fact is not awkward but natural. First of all, as a result of reforms in the army, the ministry no longer has the authority in the immediate management of the troops, which implies that military education and military career are not mandatory in the list of the requirements presented for this official.
There is already a clear distinction in this sector: the General Staff bears the responsibility for the implementing of functions of the Armed Forces, while the Ministry is responsible for ensuring defense, development of armed forces and combat-capacity preparedness. Secondly, the position of a minister is a political in itself, and vocational education and career are not mandatory. Moreover, in the history of Armenia, the civilians in this position, namely, Vazgen Sargsyan, Vazgen Manukyan and the incumbent president Serzh Sargsyan held the office longer than professional the servicemen (Vagharshak Harutyunyan, Mikayel Harutyunyan, Seyran Ohanyan), in fact, the results of the activities of the first ones are tangible and visible, ranging from the successes recorded during military operations and ended with army-building and the reforms in the Armed Forces.
Hence, Vigen Sargsyan’s appointment in this respect is not actually awkward. The problem is elsewhere: Vigen Sargsyan is not a politician in the classical sense. He though is a public figure with decades of experience and has obtained an enormous impact on the country’s management system, however, he was never publicly engaged in the politics and has always been a technocrat. Therefore, it should be mentioned that he is sent on business to the official office on behalf of Serzh Sargsyan with a mission to implement technical management. Vigen Sargsyan, apparently, will not have the ability to make independent decisions, which his predecessors had. Instead, he will have broad freedom of activity. In case of diagnosing the gaps in the system, he will be able to promptly report them to the president and present relevant projects for decisions.
We cannot say that the previous minister did not have such freedom. But the problem is that Seyran Ohanyan although being a “man of the system” had an excellent knowledge of the problems of the sector, he enjoyed reputation in the army and especially among high-ranking military officials, however, he had passes a path with many of his subordinates, including in the battlefield, and based on purely human connections, he was constrained by the issues of decision-making, especially staff decisions and applying sanctions. Vigen Sargsyan is not from inside the system, hence, he is not constrained by the connection of the past, which opens a space for him to operate freely.
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Probably, given this very fact, Serzh Sargsyan who is perfectly aware of the defects of the Armed Forces and defense ministry, sends one of his closest teammates there, with an expectation that with the help of hi, it will be possible to give impetus and finish up the reforms projects. The motive of Serzh Sargsyan’s decision to take the defense sector under his personal control can be easily explained: in the current phase of the Karabakh conflict, when the risk of war is higher than ever, the effective management of the army is the guarantee of the country’s security.
On the other hand, in the transition period of the constitutional reforms when the issues of transformation of the state governance system is on the agenda, Serzh Sargsyan has a problem of conveying a content to the reform initiated 10 years ago, which implies a clear separation of the powers of the ministry and the General Staff. The solution of these problems is important especially against the background of the electoral processes, during which most likely the issues of the security and combat-capacity of the army will become key items for discussions. And it is natural that Serzh Sargsyan should have made possibly the most optimal move for the solution of these problems, which was Vigen Sargsyan’s appointment in the position of defense minister.
The latter, on the one hand, is a professional public figure with an effective experience in managing large-scale projects, he was working next to Serzh Sargsyan for a long time, both in the years of his defense minister and in the position of a president of the country, he is well aware of the public administration system, including the nuances of the Armed Forces, on the other hand, he demonstrates a professional approach to his work and until now has not presented any political ambitions. Serzh Sargsyan, apparently, is confident that Vigen Sargsyan will avoid interfering with the functions of the General Staff, will use his experience and skills to the best for the solution of the problems set forth before the ministry, and most importantly, will ensure an effective communication between the defense system and his Supreme General Commander.
R.MANASYAN,
“Aravot”
