ARMENIA FORCED TO HAVE BIG ARMY – DEFENCE MINISTER

Hayots Ashkharh, Yerevan
9 Feb 07

Text of unattributed report by Armenian newspaper Hayots Ashkharh on
9 February headlined "We are forced to have big army"

"Actually, the Armenian army is too big for a country like Armenia,
taking into account its size and the size of the population. However,
we are forced to have a big army, and we can talk about a `reduction’
of the army when we don’t have an immediate military threat.

"Maybe, the number of conscripts can be reduced taking into account
the number of those who have reached the conscription age. But this
will not reduce the size of the army because we will have more service
personnel serving on contract basis.

"The army also provides jobs. Today, 3,500 women serve in our army, and
over 10,000 privates serve by contracts," [Armenian Defence Minister]
Serzh Sargsyan said in [the town of] Vanadzor yesterday [8 February].

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress