SEMINAR IN ARMENIAN CAPITAL TO DISCUSS ARMY REFORMS

Mediamax news agency
5 Feb 07

Yerevan, 5 February: A three-day international seminar dedicated to
military reforms in Armenia opened in Yerevan today. The seminar was
organized by the Armenian Defence Ministry and the George C. Marshall
European Centre for Security Studies.

Opening the seminar, a Marshall Centre representative, retired Maj-Gen
Horst Schmalfeld, noted the importance of reforming Armenia’s military
sector to distinguish between functions of the Defence Ministry and
the General Staff of the armed forces and ensuring the participation
of civilian personnel in managing the military sphere.

During the seminar, methodology and experience of legislative and
structural reforms will be proposed to Armenia.

Armenian Deputy Defence Minister Lt-Gen Artur Aghabekyan divided the
process of defence reforms into three conditional stages. The first
stage is legislative planned to be completed in 2008. In particular,
it is planned to adopt laws "On defence", "On military mobilization"
and "On special civil service".

The deputy minister said that Armenia’s defence doctrine will be
adopted in 2007. The strategic review of the army is to be held in
2008-2010. The reforms in the Armenian army will actually end by 2015.

Artur Aghabekyan said that the construction of the Defence Ministry’s
new building will end this autumn and this will allow to concentrate
the ministry’s administration and the General Staff in the same
building.