Day of the Armenian Army and our objects

Hraparak.am writes: "Perhaps, there is only one non-working, holiday day in the state calendar of Armenia, which is connected with the establishment of a state institution. Non-working holidays are RA Independence Day - September 21, Foundation Day of the First Republic - May 28, Constitution Day - July 5, and Armenian Army Day - January 28. The Day of the Armenian Army is the only holiday that has nothing to do with the history of the 20th or 21st century, but with the history of our millennia. And that is true, because the army, like language, religion, and cultural heritage, is always with us, both during the existence of states and the loss of statehood. In all regions of Armenian history, the history of kingdoms and republics: Haykazunis, Ararat Kingdom, Yervandunis, Artashisians, Kingdom of Cilicia, First Republic, first the Armenian army celebrated victories, and then thanks to it the restoration of statehood or independence was declared.

And all the peoples that have a history, and there are barely a dozen of them: Armenians, Greeks, Jews, Assyrians, Persians, also Romans, Germans, then all of them, except the Persians, lost their statehood many times and rebuilt it: 3, 4, 5 preserving the national identity for a thousand years and not assimilating others. In the case of all other ethnic groups, there is no history of the people, there is only a history of the place, some of them even created powerful states, but with the fall of the state, they gradually merged and disappeared, ceding the place to another ethnic group with the prospect of being destroyed in the next stage. Contrary to those peoples, the Armenian people have existed for thousands of years. Naturally, in the course of millennia, we have had ups and downs, military victories and defeats, disbanded and rebuilt armies, because successes and failures are cycles of life, the eternal being of Armenians.

What stage is our army at today, when the victories celebrated during the founding years of the Third Republic of Armenia, as well as the defeat of the 44-day war of 2020, have been left behind? Of course, that defeat was recorded mostly as a result of the personal qualities of Nikol Pashinyan, who undeservedly occupied the post of Prime Minister, his inability to lead the state, his diplomatic immaturity, and the handing over of huge territories to Azerbaijan without a single bullet. But it is also necessary to understand that there were problems in the army. First of all, it is psychological, when it seemed to the NKR Defense Army that their enemy was Azerbaijan and their friend was Russia, and they themselves were positioned in that dichotomy, with more of a cartilaginous attitude than with the awareness of being armed forces. That is why, at a moment when Russia, perceived as the "father" began to act against them, they did not have the flexibility to reposition themselves, but left Nagorno Karabakh.

Of course, all this is temporary and transient. Witness how Ilham Aliyev demands guarantees from Armenia not to seek revenge every two days. It does not speak of anything other than his extreme insecurity. Aliyev knows very well that only as a result of the international mixed situation and Russia's occupation, he found himself today in the former Nagorno-Karabakh region and the surrounding buffer zone. And during the next revolution of the wheel of history, it will fly out of those areas, as it happened in the 1990s. Ordinary Azerbaijanis are more circumspect and far-sighted than Aliyev, that they do not settle in the occupied territories in 2020. Blowing cymbals in three years, Azerbaijan announced the transfer and resettlement of almost 3,000 people to those territories, but it is not known whether at least 300 of those 3,000 people remained in the occupied territories or returned to Azerbaijan after the lack of infrastructure and the explosion of landmines. The territory of the Republic itself.

In any case, capturing or losing territories is a result of many factors, it depends much more on the political power of the moment, the economic potential of the country, diplomatic developments than on frontal operations. Therefore, when conquering or losing territories, it is essential that the army remains intact and without giving in to a capricious or, on the contrary, decadent mood, continues to act in the paradigm of national interest awareness, solidarity with state policy and maximum flexibility towards foreigners. And flexibility towards foreigners is the important quality that the Armenian army probably lost since 1998, because the organic link with our history was broken. After all, we have always maneuvered in relations with foreign powers for millennia. Even in the times of Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, we fought with the Romans against the Persians, and a couple of decades later, with the Persians against the Romans. And that was the right thing, that was the vital wisdom.

Not to brainwash the people and the army with the image of a petrified friend and a petrified enemy, which has been done since 1998, so that at any moment, when it turns out that your friend is not really a friend, people will be surprised and put down their weapons, not deciding on the next step.

Of course, it was an honor to be an opponent with the Romans or Persians and it was a blessing to be friends. Meanwhile, in the case of Turks or Russians, it would be desirable for us to be more circumspect or not to have anything to do with them at all. However, there are few wishes, the reality is that both Russians and Turks are present in our region. But we have other priorities at the moment.
The main thing is that the army of the Third Republic of Armenia, celebrating the 32nd anniversary of its foundation, should completely shake off the psychological complexities associated with the stereotypes of petrified enemies or eternal friends, rediscover the strong connection with our millennia-old history, and the psychological readiness and flexibility to maneuver between external forces. And, of course, it will be modernized and armed as much as possible. The rest is a question of a worthy leader, a favorable situation and a suitable time."