On January 28, in the National Assembly, Mr. Hovik Abrahamyan, President of the National Assembly, on the occasion of Army Day, awarded a number of high- ranking officers with medals of Honor and letters of thanks. Mr. Seyran Ohanyan, Minister of Defense, MPs and high-ranking officers of the Ministry of Defense participated in the solemn occasion.
Mr. Seyran Ohanyan, the Defense Minister of Armenia, Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces, First Deputy Minister of Defence of The Republic of Armenia, General-Lieutenant, Mr. Yuri Khachaturov, Deputy Minister, General-Lieutenant, Mr. Alik Mirzabekyan, Deputy Minister, Mr. Ara Nazaryan, and Colonel Sedrak Sedrakyan, Head of the Legal Department of the RA Ministry of Defense were awarded with the medals of Honors of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia on the occasion of the 17th anniversary of Army Day for their contribution to the raising of the level of the country’s defense and their active participation in the development of the Armed Forces. General Major, Vardan Avetisyan, Head of the Defense Ministry Department, dealing with the staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia and Colonel Artur Simonyan, Commander of the Brigade of Peace-making Forces of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia were awarded with letters of thanks for diligent and faultless performance of official duties.
Greeting those present, Mr. Hovik Abrahamyan, President of the National Assembly said:
Respectable Deputies,
Honorable Minister,
Gentlemen Generals, officers
and dear colleagues
The National Army of the Republic of Armenia was created because of the Armenian people’s love for freedom, the strong will to realize the centuries-old dream of having an independent state and the heroic efforts of the devotees of the army building and all Armenians getting stronger year by year it has become the most efficient army in the region.
This holiday is the fruit of the participation and contribution of all Armenian people in the creation of our army, and the National Army - the defender and the guarantor of stability and peace of our Motherland.
The Armenian National Army is the basis of the system of military security for our country, which provides: the protection of independence, territorial integrity, the inviolability of the frontiers of Armenia and the physical safety of the population of the Republic of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.
Though Armenia is guided by the principle of peaceful settlement of conflicts and strengthening of peace and stability, nevertheless the national army should be always ready to neutralize all possible external threats and to protect the national values of our ancestors.
It is necessary to give thanks to those patriots, who contributed in the creation of the Armenian National Army with their knowledge, experience and everyday persistent work. Some of them, took part in the founding of the army, continue to serve the sacred mission of the protection of the Motherland. It is pleasant, that today the youth replaces our veterans, and continues their work ceaselessly.
On the day of the 17-th anniversary of the creation of the national army I bow my head before the memory of our compatriots, who gave their lives for the liberation of Artsakh and for the protection of the borders of Armenia.
On the occasion of this national holiday I congratulate, once again, all our compatriots, especially the high-ranking officers of the Armenian army, who have received medals of Honor for the first time and officers, who received letters of thanks from the National Assembly, and I wish many new achievements for the glory of our people and the Republic Armenia.”