"Each of us must do our best to successfully resolve even the seemingly unsolvable problems. We have the necessary will, potential and determination for it, "Artsakh Republic President Arayik Harutyunyan told a news conference on Wednesday, summing up his first 100 days in office.
The president opened the press conference by extending congratulations on the Artsakh Republic Day. He wished peaceful and fruitful work to all for the benefit of the homeland and the Armenian people.
According to the Artsakh leader, much work has been done in different spheres during his tenure. But, he stressed, the primary work has been carried out in the defense sphere.
"In the defense sector, we have adopted the principle of 'strong border, strong rear and protected homeland' principle, which is enshrined in the action plan for 2020-2025. In order to implement this principle, necessary work is being done to strengthen the defense of our country, to increase the level of combat readiness of the army, and to continuously improve the service and social conditions of servicemen,” he said.
In Harutyunyan’s words, all reserve officers, freedom fighters of the Artsakh Liberation War and veterans of the Great Patriotic War have free access to the services of Artsakh and Armenian medical centers from September 1.
“The weaponry upgraded by experts of the Armenian military industry are already successfully used in the Armed Forces. Local agricultural products have been added to the food supply of the Defense Army,” the Artsakh leader said, stressing peace can be imposed only by strengthening the country’s army.
Harutyunyan stressed that the employees of all law enforcement agencies – Police, NSS, Rescue Service – must master the skills of using different types of military equipment and join the military in case of necessity.
As for domestic security, the Artsakh leader noted that the police and the Department of Emergency Situations are also involved in the military service to protect the Artsakh borders. "Since September 1, the salaries of police officers have increased. It was very low, now it has risen significantly. In that sense, the status of a police officer is important for our internal security. The issue of food security is being resolved at the moment,” he said.
Reflecting on the country’s foreign policy, Arayik Harutyunyan said that Artsakh pursues a multi-vector, balanced and constructive foreign policy, continuing to establish friendly, mutually beneficial, equitable political and economic relations with foreign states as much as possible.
"We stay focused on the international recognition of the Artsakh Republic and the development of centralized cooperation. Preparations are underway to expand the geography of international cooperation of Artsakh. The political leadership of the two Armenian states regularly hold consultations on the peaceful settlement of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict,” the president said. "We can express satisfaction over the fact that the visions of the two Armenian states on establishing lasting peace in the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict zone coincide.”
He informed that the Artsakh-Diaspora ties are also being strengthened, as evidenced by the creation of a working group to organize and coordinate the process of providing financial assistance to the Armenian community of Lebanon in the wake of the deadly Beirut blast.
He recalled that Artsakh has rendered humanitarian assistance, mostly food, to Beirut and the Artsakh government has allocated 35 million drams to the Armenian community of Lebanon.
Harutyunyan said that the transfer of a number of Lebanese-Armenian families wishing to settle in Artsakh is in progress. According to the president, they will be provided with jobs and housing. Several Lebanese-Armenian families already live in Artsakh, he added.
"Artsakh will continue to support our brothers and sisters living in various corners of the world," he assured.