Karabakh military exercises aimed at keeping peace – Armenian defence
minister

Arminfo, Yerevan
10 Aug 04

STEPANAKERT

“Our conventional enemy, like us, is obtaining new weapons, continuing
to modernize its troops, and the victor will be whoever makes better
use of their weaponry and equipment and competently fulfils the set
objectives. I am confident that the defence army of the self-styled
Nagornyy Karabakh Republic (NKR) will get more battle-worthy in time
and will repulse those who will attempt to disturb the peace of our
people,” the Armenian defence minister, Serzh Sarkisyan, said today,
as he was watching large-scale military exercises of the defence army
of the NKR.

“It is not the first time that the Armenian defence minister has taken
part in the military exercises in Nagornyy Karabakh. The Armenian
leadership have many times stated that the Armenian army acts as a
guarantor of the security of the population of Nagornyy Karabakh, the
part of Armenianhood living here. This is the position we are
adhering to now,” Serzh Sarkisyan told journalists covering the
exercises. Asked about possible resumption of military hostilities in
the zone of the Karabakh conflict, Serzh Sarkisyan said that there is
no real threat of resumption of military operations in the foreseeable
future. “The leaderships of Nagornyy Karabakh and Armenia have many
times stated that the Armenian side does not intend to renew military
operations.”

He said that the exercises were something like a final stage of the
annual training process, during which the results of the previous
process are identified. Naturally, such exercises are aimed at peace
and preserving the existing balance in the region, which is
predominantly defined by the quality of troops training. “And today we
have been assured that the units involved in the exercises have the
required level of training,” the Armenian defence minister said.