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Armenian defense ministry responds to former military official's allegations and reminds about criminal liability for disclosure of state secrets

Source: http://arka.am/en/news/politics/armenian_defense_ministry_responds_to_former_military_official_s_allegations_and_reminds_about_crimi/

Published: November 20, 2020

YEREVAN, November 20. /ARKA/. The Ministry of Defense of Armenia issued a statement in response to statements the former defense minister of Artsakh and ex-head of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces, Colonel General Movses Hakobyan made Thursday at a press conference.

At the press conference on Thursday, Movses Hakobyan, who recently announced his resignation from the post of head of the Military Control Service of the Armenian Defense Ministry, made some allegations about the actions of the Armenian Armed Forces during the war in Artsakh, as well as their preparedness for hostilities. These allegations "blew up" the information field of Armenia, and the official reaction came very soon.

Disclosure of classified data

The ministry informed that Hakobyan made a number of statements that not only do not correspond to reality, but also contain state secrets, and also refer to topics related to Armenia's international military cooperation in the field of defense, the disclosure of which only harms the country's defense capability.

"Hakobyan, who for only about half a year held the post of head of the logistics department of the Ministry of Defense and during this period put his signature on the agreements on the acquisition of weapons, based on the agreements reached between the leaders and ministers of defense of Armenia and other countries, is trying to create the impression that only during his service, the Ministry of Defense acquired such weapons and ammunition, which were effectively used against the enemy in this war," the ministry says in its statement.

It is noted that this allegation, to put it mildly, is far from reality. Even if Movses Hakobyan set his hand to the part of the agreements on these types of weapons, it is more than obvious that negotiations on the acquisition of these weapons began much earlier, and at least it is unfair to ascribe the whole process to oneself. In addition, a number of types of weapons indicated by Hakobyan are acquired periodically, and not as a result of a one-time deal.

The ministry believes that the former military official makes extremely dangerous statements, revealing the structure of the Armed Forces and the features of military units: this is very secret data, the disclosure of which is criminalized. Thus, in particular, according to Article 23 of the Law "On State and Official Secrets", the rights of citizens to disseminate classified information, to which they have or previously had the right to access, may be limited, prior to the declassification of data provided for by law.

"That is, even if Movses Hakobyan is no longer considered an official of the Ministry of Defense, this does not mean that he can disclose state secrets," the ministry says.

On the uselessness of the SU-30SM

Hakobyan criticized Armenia's acquisition of ultra-modern SU-30SM aircraft and other military equipment, saying that it was ineffective. The Armenian defense ministry said that with such statements, one should always remember the simple fact that the Armenian Armed Forces, in addition to being the guarantors of the security of Artsakh, are also obliged to protect the security of Armenia, including from those probable adversaries, in whose armament there are many ultra-modern combat aircraft. The acquisition of the SU-30SM must be viewed within the framework of this logic.

"And the statement about whether these aircraft were actually used or not, Mr. Hakobyan had the opportunity to clarify with the Minister of Defense and the head of the General Staff that, for unknown reasons, he did not make before making his statements at a press conference," the statement says.

The defense ministry also called Hakobyan's allegation that the SU-30SM had no missiles as an outright lie. "These aircraft are weapons that were supposed to be transformed into power. The process was carried out before the war and completed during the war," the defense ministry said.

On the non-use of air defense systems Osa

Hakobyan claims that the Osa air defense systems acquired by Armenia were not used, that this purchase was useless, while if the Tor systems were purchased instead, the fight against enemy drones would be incomparably more effective.

"This statement is also far from reality. Firstly, part of the air defense systems available to the Armenian side, including Tor and Osa, were hit by enemy drones regardless of their type and year of production. The problem is that the used well-known drones against us were created recently, and completely effective means in the fight against them, objectively, are still at the development stage," the ministry said.

Akopyan’s statement that Osa installments did not shoot is another lie. According to confirmed data, 62 enemy drones and also the ultra-expensive Israeli-made Hermes-900 UAV were hit by the Osa systems.

"On the other hand, it is unacceptable to form ideas about the air defense system of the Armenian army, focusing exclusively on the Wasp systems. The armament of the Armenian army includes a number of air defense systems, the number and types of which are constantly being added and updated," the message says.

On the termination of the replenishment of troops on the third day of the war

Hakobyan makes also another false statement that the replenishment of troops was stopped on the third day of the war. According to the ministry, this is an absolute lie: thousands of citizens will confirm that they have duly received the mobilization summons, have come to the territorial divisions, completed short preliminary training courses in various training units and went to the frontline.

"Moreover, in parallel with the replenishment of troops, the organization of completely new military units, consisting of reservists, was also carried out. A lot of reports about this whole process were prepared by a variety of media and periodically broadcast on television," the defense ministry stressed.

About the allegation of 100% false information from the ministry

The Armenian defense ministry finds Hakobyan's observation about "100% lies" of information disseminated by the defense department during the war absolutely unacceptable. The ministry recalled that during the war Hakobyan held a high position in the ministry of defense and could express his discontent and suggestions around this topic, which he did not. Moreover, the ministry of defense is convinced that in terms of providing information, the defense department has done everything possible that would not harm the course of hostilities.

About coronavirus

As for the coronavirus discovered in Hakobyan during the hostilities, the documents testifying to this are present and the latter's desire to refute the obvious facts is incomprehensible.

Disclosure of unacceptable topics of international military cooperation

The defense ministry noted with regret that the former military official made statements on international military cooperation of our country on such topics, the disclosure of which is unacceptable.

"We are more than convinced that Hakobyan is aware of this simple truth. The factor that the former high-ranking military man has now left the system does not give him the right to create problems for the entire system in parallel with leaving," the ministry said.

It is reported that the ministry of defense is clearly aware that in the actions of the Armenian side during the war unleashed against Artsakh there were a number of mistakes and omissions, which are being analyzed in detail at this stage. These are mistakes and omissions, some of which are of a conceptual nature and for which the former head of the General Staff Movses Hakobyan will also be equally responsible, at least for the period of his service.

"We are convinced that it is unbecoming for those who have served for many years in the country's defense system and who have held key posts to express under the influence of the moment or for other interests such divorced-from-reality accusations against a structure that continues to carry out the most important mission to ensure the country's security," summed up in the ministry.

Tags: Date-2020-11-20, ArtsakhWar-2020

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