The parliamentary opposition of Armenia has severely criticized the government’s military policy. According to MP Artur Khachatryan, the post-war budgetary allocations and chaotic purchases of incompatible weapons do not ensure the real security of the country against the background of external threats.
Presenting a detailed analysis of the situation in the defense sector, a deputy of the “Armenia” faction Artur Khachatryan it is unacceptable to consider the authorities’ statements that the army is not the most important factor in the security system. The politician recalled the ultimatum rhetoric of Baku, which openly declares that it will not tolerate the militarization of Armenia.
Assessing the scale of Arsenal’s losses in the 2020 war, the oppositionist drew parallels with a house that survived a disaster. According to him, the current military budget cannot be compared with the indicators of previous years, because now the calculation starts from the zero point. “If there is a fire at home, one cannot spend as much as in previous years. it is necessary to invest much more funds to return to the level before the fire”, the deputy emphasized, adding that the government is obliged to adequately estimate the cost of the complete restoration of the destroyed resources.
Touching upon the diversification of arms imports, Khachatryan expressed doubts about the compatibility of the purchased systems. He described the acquisition of Indian, Iranian, French and Russian weapons as the creation of a “military zoo”. The deputy noted that each unit of equipment can be the best in its class, but their integration into a unified system of management, supply and personnel training raises serious questions.
He described the situation related to the lack of operational compatibility with a figurative metaphor. “Beautiful sushi is delicious, kashi is also delicious, but the sushi you put in kashi, bon appetit, I would like to see who will eat it.”
Khachatryan pointed to the purchase of Su-30 fighter jets, which were never armed with missiles, as a vivid example of managerial failures. Sarcastically calling them “selfie” planes, the politician considered the situation, when a year and a half after purchase, combat vehicles are left without ammunition, to be absurd. “Buying a weapon without missiles is like buying a PlayStation for a child without a game disk,” he stated.
Summarizing his speech, the oppositionist called on the authorities to face the truth, stressing that real peace is imposed solely by the balance of power, and “saying peace with halvah-halvah will not sweeten the mouth”.
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