Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

On 30 November 2021, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor published a report regarding the results of assessing the actions taken by the RA Government up to 30 November 2021 for the reforms, transformation and modernization of the Armed Forces.

The report addresses the priorities established by the Government’s 2021-2026 five-year program.

Attaching importance to continuous assessment of the implementation of the reforms, as well as the need to improve the mechanisms of civil oversight of the Armed Forces, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor continues observing the implementation of the RA Government’s actions aimed at reforming, transforming and modernizing the RA Armed Forces. 

Both in the aforementioned report and in the report being presented, HCAV conducted the study by analyzing the information disseminated through official sources of the Armed Forces, as well as the information disseminated by mass media and made available to the public. 

The report addresses each of the 11 priorities under the subpoint concerning the reforms of the Armed Forces planned by the five-year program of the RA Government. 

On 23 June 2022, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor presented the Green Paper on the Reforms in the Armed Forces, which is co-authored by PhD Eduard Abrahamyan, lecturer and doctoral candidate at the University of Leicester, and Armine Margaryan, expert of political and military matters.

Addressing the implementation of the priorities of the  Armed Forces reforms planned under the Government’s 2021-2026 five-year program, we record the following:

• according to the officials, some steps are being taken for the establishment of a professional army, by making the financial security of servicemen as a motivating factor; and yet, the steps taken to this end are not visible;

• there is still no concrete decision regarding the change of the military service terms,

• there is also no available information regarding the steps being taken for the review of the national security strategy and development of a new military doctrine,

• it is also unknown what steps have been taken for the introduction of a unified automated management system,

• there is also insufficient transparency with respect to the actions taken to improve the organizational and staff structure of the Armed Forces,

• Armenia continues implementing reforms of its Armed Forces with the support and participation of a state as authoritarian as Russian,

• taking into account the existence of death cases in non-combat conditions, we can record that the inadequate level of education, and violations of statutory relations in the Armed Forces remain the main conditions impeding the reforms of the Armed Forces,

• it is unknown how the sphere of information and cybersecurity is developing in Armenia, and whether the steps taken in this sphere are enough to ensure the country’s security,

• crimes in the Armed Forces indicate the inadequate level of moral-psychological state,

• due to the insufficient amount of information, it is still impossible to assess efficiency of the work aimed at increasing the level of security of objects and infrastructure of strategic importance,

• the priority of establishing an institute of military ombudsman is still in place in terms of expanding the mechanisms of civil oversight of the defense sector, as well as forming effective human rights mechanisms.

Click here to read the full report (in Armenian).