Sargsyan: Armenian army is the strongest in the region
14.03.2017,
16:13
‘Armenian army is one of the strongest and capable armies in the region,’ Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said in an interview with an influential Russia daily ‘Izvestia’ ahead of his official visit to the Russian Federation that started today.
YEREVAN, March 14. /ARKA/. ‘Armenian army is one of the strongest and capable armies in the region,’ Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said in an interview with an influential Russia daily ‘Izvestia’ ahead of his official visit to the Russian Federation that started today.
"Because of ongoing threats of physical destruction of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh and territorial claims to Armenia, we are paying close attention to strengthening of the country's defense capacity. It is not surprising that one of the first well-established state institutions in our country was the army, which has long been considered one of the strongest and most capable armies in the region," Sargsyan said.
He added that today, 25 years after its formation, the Armenian armed forces continue to improve, strengthening their operational capabilities and acquiring modern weapons.
The President also touched on the unprecedented surge in violence in 2016 April triggered by Azerbaijan against Nagorno-Karabakh saying it has caused significant damage to the Karabakh peace process and the international efforts to restore confidence between the parties for an exclusively peaceful settlement of the conflict.
"The latest rise in tension along the contact line, which occurred on February 25 overnight, once again demonstrated that identifying the party that violates the ceasefire is problematic. It also stressed the urgent need for creation of an international mechanism for monitoring of the ceasefire and investigating truce breaches, as was agreed by the parties in 2016 at the summits in Vienna and St. Petersburg,’ Sargsyan said.
From 2 to 5 April 2016, the Azerbaijani armed forces launched a fierce fighting along the entire line of contact in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone using rocket and artillery weapons, armored vehicles and aircraft. The Karabakh Defense Army successfully suppressed the aggressive actions of the enemy, inflicting heavy losses on its manpower and the weaponry. -0-
"Because of ongoing threats of physical destruction of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh and territorial claims to Armenia, we are paying close attention to strengthening of the country's defense capacity. It is not surprising that one of the first well-established state institutions in our country was the army, which has long been considered one of the strongest and most capable armies in the region," Sargsyan said.
He added that today, 25 years after its formation, the Armenian armed forces continue to improve, strengthening their operational capabilities and acquiring modern weapons.
The President also touched on the unprecedented surge in violence in 2016 April triggered by Azerbaijan against Nagorno-Karabakh saying it has caused significant damage to the Karabakh peace process and the international efforts to restore confidence between the parties for an exclusively peaceful settlement of the conflict.
"The latest rise in tension along the contact line, which occurred on February 25 overnight, once again demonstrated that identifying the party that violates the ceasefire is problematic. It also stressed the urgent need for creation of an international mechanism for monitoring of the ceasefire and investigating truce breaches, as was agreed by the parties in 2016 at the summits in Vienna and St. Petersburg,’ Sargsyan said.
From 2 to 5 April 2016, the Azerbaijani armed forces launched a fierce fighting along the entire line of contact in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone using rocket and artillery weapons, armored vehicles and aircraft. The Karabakh Defense Army successfully suppressed the aggressive actions of the enemy, inflicting heavy losses on its manpower and the weaponry. -0-
