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KOCHARIAN SIGNS ARMENIAN DEFENSE DOCTRINE
By Emil Danielyan
Radio Liberty, Czech Republic
Dec 26 2007
President Robert Kocharian signed on Wednesday Armenia's official
military doctrine that describes Azerbaijan's pledges to win back
Nagorno-Karabakh as a key threat to national security and asserts
Yerevan's right to launch pre-emptive military strikes against
potential aggressors.
"In the event of an immediate threat of armed aggression, the Republic
of Armenia reserves itself the right to take military actions aimed at
neutralizing it," reads the doctrine approved by Kocharian's National
Security Council on Friday.
The 18-page document was drawn up by a special commission of the
Armenian Defense Ministry in collaboration with local and foreign
experts. Its main points are in tune a separate "national security
strategy" that was signed by the president in February.
Both documents were developed as a result of Armenia's decision three
years ago to deepen its defense and security links with NATO and
other Western security structures. The Armenian government has since
upgraded its participation in NATO's Partnership for Peace program
by negotiating an "individual partnership action plan," or IPAP,
with the U.S.-led alliance.
Accordingly, the military doctrine states that Armenia will
increasingly cooperate with the armed forces of NATO member states
and the United States in particular in reforming its military and
contributing to international security. It specifically commits
Yerevan to expanding its involvement in Western-led peace-keeping
operations abroad. The Armenian military already has small contingents
deployed in Kosovo and Iraq and is considering joining the NATO-led
multinational force in Afghanistan.
The doctrine makes it clear at the same that "strategic partnership"
with Russia will remain the bedrock of Armenia's defense policy. It
says the two countries will continue to maintain close military ties
both on a bilateral basis and within the framework of the Russian-led
Collective Security Treaty Organization.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and Azerbaijan's persistent threats
to resolve it by force are high on the list of "external threats"
to Armenia's security contained in the document. "The Republic of
Armenia is the guarantor and supporter of the security of the people
of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and their chosen path of development,"
it says. Among other perceived security threats is Turkey's "strategic
alliance" with Azerbaijan and continuing economic blockade of Armenia.
The doctrine also lists internal security challenges such as attempts
to change the country's "constitutional order," set up "illegal armed
groups" and "discredit" the Armenian Armed Forces. The latter are to
play the central role in meeting all these challenges. The government,
for its part, undertakes to make the army more combat-ready by
supplying it with modern weaponry and boosting the morale of military
personnel.
The doctrine reaffirms the government's commitment to defense reforms
that are meant to bring the Armenian military into greater conformity
with NATO standards and practices. The government undertook to
implement such reforms three years ago and plans to complete them by
2015. If implemented, they will lead to greater civilian control over
the military and a so-called "civilianization" of the Armenian Defense
Ministry. The ministry's current organizational structure essentially
mirrors that of the formerly Soviet and now Russian armed forces,
with army officers holding just about every ministerial position and
facing little civilian oversight.
The doctrine further envisages that the proportion of contractual
personnel in Armenia's conscription-based army will grow significantly
in the coming years.
By Emil Danielyan
Radio Liberty, Czech Republic
Dec 26 2007
President Robert Kocharian signed on Wednesday Armenia's official
military doctrine that describes Azerbaijan's pledges to win back
Nagorno-Karabakh as a key threat to national security and asserts
Yerevan's right to launch pre-emptive military strikes against
potential aggressors.
"In the event of an immediate threat of armed aggression, the Republic
of Armenia reserves itself the right to take military actions aimed at
neutralizing it," reads the doctrine approved by Kocharian's National
Security Council on Friday.
The 18-page document was drawn up by a special commission of the
Armenian Defense Ministry in collaboration with local and foreign
experts. Its main points are in tune a separate "national security
strategy" that was signed by the president in February.
Both documents were developed as a result of Armenia's decision three
years ago to deepen its defense and security links with NATO and
other Western security structures. The Armenian government has since
upgraded its participation in NATO's Partnership for Peace program
by negotiating an "individual partnership action plan," or IPAP,
with the U.S.-led alliance.
Accordingly, the military doctrine states that Armenia will
increasingly cooperate with the armed forces of NATO member states
and the United States in particular in reforming its military and
contributing to international security. It specifically commits
Yerevan to expanding its involvement in Western-led peace-keeping
operations abroad. The Armenian military already has small contingents
deployed in Kosovo and Iraq and is considering joining the NATO-led
multinational force in Afghanistan.
The doctrine makes it clear at the same that "strategic partnership"
with Russia will remain the bedrock of Armenia's defense policy. It
says the two countries will continue to maintain close military ties
both on a bilateral basis and within the framework of the Russian-led
Collective Security Treaty Organization.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and Azerbaijan's persistent threats
to resolve it by force are high on the list of "external threats"
to Armenia's security contained in the document. "The Republic of
Armenia is the guarantor and supporter of the security of the people
of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and their chosen path of development,"
it says. Among other perceived security threats is Turkey's "strategic
alliance" with Azerbaijan and continuing economic blockade of Armenia.
The doctrine also lists internal security challenges such as attempts
to change the country's "constitutional order," set up "illegal armed
groups" and "discredit" the Armenian Armed Forces. The latter are to
play the central role in meeting all these challenges. The government,
for its part, undertakes to make the army more combat-ready by
supplying it with modern weaponry and boosting the morale of military
personnel.
The doctrine reaffirms the government's commitment to defense reforms
that are meant to bring the Armenian military into greater conformity
with NATO standards and practices. The government undertook to
implement such reforms three years ago and plans to complete them by
2015. If implemented, they will lead to greater civilian control over
the military and a so-called "civilianization" of the Armenian Defense
Ministry. The ministry's current organizational structure essentially
mirrors that of the formerly Soviet and now Russian armed forces,
with army officers holding just about every ministerial position and
facing little civilian oversight.
The doctrine further envisages that the proportion of contractual
personnel in Armenia's conscription-based army will grow significantly
in the coming years.