Armenian conscripts' parents demand to withdraw troops from Karabakh

Regular soldiers should be returned from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia; otherwise they may become victims of acts of sabotage or be captured, protesters in Yerevan have stated. The Armenian Defence Minister has ruled out the troop withdrawal, but promised to send soldiers to vacations.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 10, the agreement signed by Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on the end of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh came into force; and local residents began returning to the unrecognized republic.

On November 28, conscripts' parents held their protest for the second day already demanding to return their sons from Nagorno-Karabakh. They fear that their sons may be captured or fall victim to sabotage acts committed by Azerbaijanis.

Vagarshak Arutyunyan, the head of the Armenian Ministry of Defence (MoD), met the parents, but his answers failed to satisfy them. "He told us that the withdrawal of troops from Karabakh is out of question. That is, our children should stay there," one of the protesters said. According to his story, the minister promised that all the soldiers who had taken part in the hostilities and continue staying on combat duty in Nagorno-Karabakh will be given a leave for vacations. For this time, they will be replaced by others, the "Sputnik Armenia" has reported.

The protesters have noted that the military service in Nagorno-Karabakh is unsafe; and the authorities failed to return those soldiers who had been captured.

The protesters submitted a written application demanding to transfer their sons for further service in Armenia, and also insisted on a new meeting with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who had failed to answer their questions, the "Sputnik Armenia" has added.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 28, 2020 at 10:21 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.