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“Chief of the Presidential Staff, Vigen Sargsyan will be appointed Defense Minister, and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edward Nalbandian will be reappointed. Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces [of Armenia], Yuri Khachaturov will be appointed Secretary of National Security Council, [and the former] Secretary of National Security Council, Armen Gevorgyan will be appointed Chief of the Presidential Staff, Movses Hakobyan will be appointed Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces,” political scientist Sergey Minasyan told reporters.

“I think the logic behind the reappointment of Edward Nalbandian is clear. In fact, in contrast to the [various] approaches, public opinions, the main reason for the reappointment is that Serzh Sargsyan considers some features important, while the public doesn’t see those. Edward Nalbandian belongs to the Soviet diplomatic school, and is a quite uncomfortable partner for his Turkish and Azerbaijani counterparts. Of course, the Soviet diplomatic school has its disadvantages, which may not be visible in the social, informational field, but perhaps it is fully compensated for by the characteristics demonstrated in the activities of Azerbaijani and Turkish counterparts, according to the President’s calculations,” he said.

The political scientist also spoke about the appointment of Vigen Sargsyan. “Former Defense Minister, Seyran Ohanyan is one of the Defense Ministers, who served the longest engaging in serious activities. It is clear that the military-political situation created after the events of April requires a more active involvement of senior leadership. The fact that a civilian will be appointed in this position, too, should not cause a major surprise, as we have the experience in Armenia.”

According to Sergey Minasyan, along with some achievements, Vigen Sargsyan faces serious problems; long-term solutions need to be found. The political scientist said that development of a new military doctrine, creation of conceptual documents in the sphere of security, defense and development of a containment strategy need to be priorities for the new Minister. “I think that this will have positive results. It is clear that the military-political situation has changed. The appointment of the Chief of Presidential Staff is an indicator of increased level of attention in the defense sector.”
According to him, Vigen Sargsyan's appointment should at least encourage a new direction in the field of defense.

“On the other hand, the appointment of former NKR Defense Minister, Movses Hakobyan has a certain political message. For the Azerbaijani and foreign powers, the appointment of Artsakh serviceman sends a message of tougher military policy,” the political scientist said, adding that the logics between the appointment of the former Chief of General Staff of the AF as Secretary of National Security Council, is that he played a considerable role during the events of April.