Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan today called at the Ministry of Defense to introduce to the top brass newly appointed chief of the General Staff Artak Davtyan.

Addressing those present, Prime Minister Pashinyan stated:
“Dear Mr. Minister,
Dear Colleagues,
Generals and Officers,

I am here to introduce Lieutenant General Artak Davtyan as the new chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces. This is not news, indeed, since we all knew that Mr. Davtyan was going to substitute Onik Gasparyan in the position of Chief of the General Staff, but we had to wait for some time due to some legislative peculiarities.

You may know that Mr. Davtyan left the post of Chief of the General Staff for reasons not related to his service, and I must state that Mr. Davtyan and I have kept in touch all this time. It was obvious to me that we should re-engage him to benefit from his potential in managing our public affairs.

During this time, Mr. Davtyan served as Chairman of the Military-Industrial Committee. I asked him to leave for Syunik during the war in order to build self-defense capacity in Syunik or to participate in the organization of self-defense. That is, Mr. Davtyan was always involved and, in fact, he was not cut off from state affairs. I am confident that he will exercise his mission at the same high level as he started. Of course, that mission is not an easy one: we are going through challenging times, and the tasks we face are more than serious. The first task is to protect and rebuild the Armed Forces. The second task is to reform the Army. This will strengthen, first of all, the Armed Forces, enhance the country’s security potential and, of course, the level of our confidence in the Armed Forces and in our security system.

Mr. Davtyan, I congratulate you on being reappointed to this high position. Let me voice my confidence that we will be able to find such solutions as meet the best interests of our country, our state and our people. I wish you every success in this responsible position and I hope we will soon be able to defy the challenges faced due to the well-known circumstances.

I would like to highlight another key factor: while introducing you as Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces in 2018, I considered it important to emphasize that the Armed Forces ought to be apolitical, and I must say that you lived up to the task.

We held snap parliamentary elections in December, 2018, and there was not a single alarming signal, not a single case of armed forces being involved in political processes. This is of paramount importance, and I am convinced that we will have the same situation in the future as well.

Once again, I wish to state that the developments we have witnessed from February to this day are understandable in many ways. Let me assure you that they have left no human or political trace in me; I just have to ask everyone to abide by the principle of de-politicized and apolitical armed forces. I am not asking it for me, or for the sake of a particular group interest: it is a fundamental principle that the Armed Forces need first and foremost.

The Armed Forces must move on without looking back at all, while the Government must ensure the normal development of the Armed Forces; we must provide for everything, especially in this situation. As strange as it may sound, the Armed Forces should feel protected, but on the other hand, they should not shy away from answering the questions posed, because we need it. Of course, conclusions should be drawn, but the conclusions should not be the same as we saw in the case of some respected top brass representatives.”

Thanking the Prime Minister for confidence, Artak Davtyan said, “Indeed, we will take note of your instructions. I am confident that the Armed Forces will not take part in any political process not stipulated by the Constitution and laws. At the same time, with your permission, Mr. Prime Minister, I would like to extend of vote of thanks to Colonel General Gasparyan for his leadership during the war, as well as to General Galstyan for the exercise of his duties during that period. We hope that through joint efforts we will be able to solve the problems facing the army.”

In conclusion, Prime Minister Pashinyan said, “I would like to join you and once again thank Colonel General Onik Gasparyan for the services rendered, and of course, Mr. Galstyan, thank you for fulfilling your duties as Acting Chief of the General Staff. Thank you all, since we went through a very difficult and challenging period, and I think that during this time we did everything possible to get out ever stronger, more united and optimistic about the future.”