ArmInfo. In his speech in the courtroom, Robert Kocharian described in detail the situation that developed in Armenia on February 23, 2008. The lawyer of the second president of Armenia Robert Kocharian Hayk Halumyan said this in a conversation with journalists.
"The second president, in particular, noted that on these days information was received that work was being conducted in the army so that the military would join the demonstrators. Moreover, there were also rumors that the deputy defense minister should join the demonstrators Manvel Grigoryan, who was also the head of the Yerkrapah union. After that, discussions began in the administration of this union so that members of the union join the protesters. Robert Kocharyan, in the current situation, invited the army commander , and instructed the Minister of Defense Mikayel Harutyunyan to ensure the neutrality of the army, "said Halumyan.
He said that Kocharyan, in his speech, stated that he had instructed the minister that the army should not interfere in these processes. Moreover, high-ranking officers, who were going to continue their military service, had to remain aloof from the processes taking place in the Yerkrapah union. As Halumian noted, otherwise, they could drop out of the army.
"I would like to note that in his speech, Robert Kocharian also spoke about the well-known order" 0038. "The second president of Armenia reiterated that, like any order of the Minister of Defense, this order was neither during his presidency nor Levon's presidency Ter-Petrosyan or Serzh Sargsyan have never been sent for coordination with the head of state, "said Halumyan. He added that during the rule of three Armenian presidents there was simply no need for such a law. The second president of Armenia also noted in his speech: "There was nothing bad in the order 0038, which could be held criminally liable," Kocharian concluded.
It should be noted that in February 2008 it was expected that Deputy Defense Ministers Manvel Grigoryan and Gagik Melkonyan would join the opposition.