Will Tiran Khachatryan Contest His Dismissal Order in Court?

According to "Factinfo" reports, the former Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the RA Armed Forces, Tiran Khachatryan, intends to contest his dismissal order in court, which was signed by the President based on Nikol Pashinyan's proposal.

Factinfo contacted Lieutenant General Khachatryan for confirmation of the information, but he declined to answer questions, stating that he would no longer respond to reporters.

It is noteworthy that the reason for the dismissal of the first deputy chief of the RA Armed Forces General Staff, Tiran Khachatryan, was his laughing reaction to Pashinyan’s statement regarding Iskander missiles. Specifically, during an interview with one of the media outlets on February 23, Prime Minister Pashinyan claimed that the Iskander missiles fired during the war did not explode or only exploded at 10 percent capacity, hinting that Russia may have supplied Armenia with weapons manufactured in the 1980s.

Pashinyan's statement garnered a significant reaction both from Russia and the expert community, as experts indicated that it was at least unprofessional. The first deputy chief of the RA Armed Forces General Staff commented on the statement with laughter, noting that such an assertion is impossible.

“Of course, it’s impossible… how, the ‘Iskanders’… from one shot… at 10 percent… Excuse me, this isn’t serious (laughs), one cannot talk about these things or make conclusions like that. Questions about this type of weapon should not be asked over the phone, and surface-level conclusions should not be drawn; this is not serious at all. I don’t know what anyone said, but this is impossible (laughs again). I would simply ask to refrain from expanding the topic and forming misconceptions about this type of weapon,” Khachatryan had stated during an interview with a media outlet.

Following this statement, Khachatryan was dismissed from his position, with the president signing the proposal to relieve him of his duties on February 24.

Following Khachatryan's dismissal, the General Staff of the RA Armed Forces issued a statement expressing its strong protest over the reason for his dismissal, which they deemed shortsighted and unfounded. The General Staff expressed that the dismissal of the first deputy chief was executed without considering the national and state interests of the Republic of Armenia, based solely on personal and ambitious feelings. In such dire conditions for the country, such a decision is an anti-state and irresponsible step.

In case a claim is filed with the Administrative Court, the general could also request a temporary suspension of the dismissal order as a precautionary measure.