Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan today attended the event marking the opening of the Water Patrol Service nearby Lake Sevan.

Minister of Internal Affairs Vahe Ghazaryan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures Gnel Sanosyan, MPs and other officials attended the event.

Prime Minister Pashinyan made a speech, in which he particularly said,

"Dear Cabinet members
Dear MPs,
Dear colleagues of the Ministry of Internal Affairs,
Dear police officers,

Congratulations to all of us on the launch of another police division. We are launching the patrol police water service today, which is a very important event.

Basically, we hereby record that the legal system in the Republic of Armenia operates in all places, in all corners. In this regard, it is very important to launch this new service, which is new even within the newly created Patrol Police, because the service will be mainly related to law enforcement activities carried out on Lake Sevan and in the coastal areas.

I want to thank our international partners for supporting us in this matter - the Government of the Russian Federation, the United States of America, our partners from the European Union, who have supported us since the first day of the formation of the Patrol Service, and this support is continuous.

In general, it seems to us every time that we are approaching the final stage of the Patrol Police, but the reality, the real assessment of the situation brings me to the conclusion that, in general, the reforms never end. This is true also for the reform process of the Police and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

We have been working so long and consistently, the Patrol Police is now a reality throughout the country.

What is the next step? In the logic of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, in the near future, we should carry out reforms of the Criminal Police, carry out reforms of the Community Police, we should establish a Police Guard, the Academy of the Police or the Ministry of the Interior should get a new quality and breath. In the near future, we are waiting for the completion of construction and opening of the Operational Management Center of the Patrol Police Service.

But, in general, even if all these foundational works take place, naturally, the reform process will not end there. A question will arise: what's next for the same Patrol Service? We have started these discussions and we will continue and carry out these processes.

Next, there should be a continuous and constant process of upgrading the professional qualities of the Police and Rescue Service officers. We must all realize that we want the best drivers, the best motorcyclists, the best boatmen to serve in the Police or Patrol Service, and inevitably it will be so.

Rescue service reforms are planned in the near future. Serving in the rescue service, as well as in the Police, should be one of the most prestigious jobs in the Republic of Armenia.

I want to draw everyone's attention to this detail, because the police and rescuers are the ones people turn to when they are in a difficult situation. In general, who do we turn to first in our daily life when we have a problem? To our most trusted people. Therefore, in Armenia, the Police and the Rescue Service or the policeman and the rescuer should become the most trusted people.

I want to draw everyone's attention again to the following issue: there will be no compromises in the Police, the Patrol Police, in case any corruption phenomenon is noticed, or we should not even let it be noticed, we must carry out preventive work. Every employee of the Patrol Service and in general of this new Police should record for himself that this job, with the continuous strengthening of social guarantees, voluntary certification systems, continuous salary increases, is guaranteed to him for as long as he is well-mannered and professional. Therefore, those who cross the negative line of courtesy and professionalism should no longer work in the Police, Patrol Service.

Now we must say very directly and transparently: our next task is to form a very strong reserve of the Patrol Police. In general, I want to remind you about our conceptual agreement. as a result of the reforms, we should achieve the following mechanism: the first step to get a job in the Police and make a career should be the Patrol Service, that is, after completing this stage of our reforms, whoever wants to become a police officer should first start working in the Patrol Police. The Patrol Service should become a crossroads for the Police in some sense. Anyone who is unprofessional and disrespectful should be removed from the service. All those who are professional and well behaved should have a normal career in the Police. Our vision for the reform of the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is precisely for this reason that for each stage and position, as in this case with the Patrol Police, they should undergo trainings, courses, increasing their level of professionalism and courtesy.

Dear attendees,

It is a very important and symbolic event for us, for me personally. I'm glad that now when we say Police, we imagine new cars, different equipment, good uniforms, higher level of social guarantees. And we do all this for two reasons. First, of course, the comfort, mobility, technical equipment of Police officers is very important for us. But, in the end, let's not forget that the Police and, in particular, the Patrol Police are the primary and largest link in direct contact with the citizens of the Republic of Armenia. Police and Patrol Police are the face of our state and the image of our state. I want to draw the attention of each of you to this fact and ask you to pay special attention and I am putting this task before the Police, in general, we are talking about all our law-enforcment structures, all our civil servants, starting from their appearance, behavior, and manner of conduct, from the manner of speaking, in this uniform and service, you are not only an individual, but also a representative of the state, providing services to citizens, and in the case of foreigners, giving an idea of the Republic of Armenia.

Every citizen of Armenia evaluates himself as a citizen from contact with you. Every foreigner gets an idea of what the Republic of Armenia is from his interactions with you. And our task is for the Republic of Armenia to present itself as an independent, sovereign, free, democratic country with a clear constitutional order and legal system, where the rule of law prevails and where everyone's rights are protected.

Glory to the martyrs and long live the Republic of Armenia.
Congratulations to all of us."

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The Water Patrol Service, in cooperation with other departments and divisions, will provide high-quality service in the direction of ensuring public safety, as well as detecting crimes.

Instructors from the USA within the framework of the ICITAP program of the US Department of Justice conducted trainings with the officers of the specialised division of the patrol service in Lake Sevan.

In parallel, theoretical trainings were conducted by the representatives of the "Sevan" National Park, the rescue service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the educational complex and the battalion of the Gegharkunik region of the Patrol Service. And all of this was preceded by large-scale joint work with international partners, competitions and tests for employment in the water patrol service.

Ships provided by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation were transported to Yerevan, and educational processes and module development were carried out with American partners.

The remaining necessary property: ships, water scooters, radio communication equipment, the acquisition of service SUVs intended for the transportation of water equipment, as well as the construction and furnishing of modular buildings were and will be carried out with the funds of the state budget.

The patrolmen who successfully passed the competition for checking the level of swimming abilities underwent training, land and water exercises at the educational complex of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They studied the legislation of the water patrol service, underwent physical and firearms training.