Samvel Babayan Issues Statement

The office of the 'United Homeland' party in Artsakh has released a statement from the party president, Samvel Babayan, addressing rumors regarding his supposed voluntary departure from Artsakh during the wartime. Babayan stated, 'In the post-war period, defamatory information has periodically surfaced about my alleged voluntary departure from Artsakh during the war as the Secretary of the Security Council of the Republic of Artsakh, motivated by self-serving interests, which makes it necessary for me to clarify several significant points.'

'From June to November 2020, while holding the position of Secretary of the Advisory Body on Security Issues under the President, I carried out actions arising from my official duties throughout the war, including providing advice on the organization of military operations. The matters of how many of these advisory observations were accepted and/or to what precision they were implemented belong to a different addressee.'

'On November 6, 2020, after the meeting of the Security Council of Artsakh, I was officially dispatched to Erevan on the special assignment of the president (details regarding the purpose and results of the mission cannot be publicized by me based on state and service secrecy). The day immediately following the mission, on November 7, the little remaining population in Stepanakert was evacuated, and on November 9, the well-known trilateral statement was signed under very unfavorable conditions for the Armenian side.'

'Upon learning about the statement, I attempted to prevent it, as I have previously mentioned, but the document had already been signed. As the Secretary of the Security Council, unable to change the course of events, I found it no longer purposeful to continue holding that prominent but empty position. Subsequently, in protest, I also renounced the high title of 'Hero of Artsakh.'

'After leaving the state system, I developed and presented sectoral approaches, programs, and concepts in crisis management to the authorities of Artsakh and Armenia, assessing the situation created in and around Artsakh in a multifaceted manner with my political like-minded individuals. I would also like to note that I regularly communicate with the authorities of Artsakh as the leader of a parliamentary force, while my interactions with the authorities of the Republic of Armenia have occurred exclusively in the realm of extra-parliamentary forces, from which I later withdrew due to the inefficiency of the format.'

'Regarding the investigations of the 44-day war, I have been summoned for questioning twice, providing clarifications about my involvement and participation in the military operations. In this regard, I am ready to bear responsibility if proven by biased media publications regarding actions attributed to me. Otherwise, I will pursue the authors of the slander and false denunciation for accountability. Let us equip ourselves with patience and follow the procedural processes.'

'Considering the fact that law enforcement agencies have not initiated legal actions based on reports of my alleged voluntary departure from Artsakh during the wartime as a high-ranking official of the Republic of Artsakh, I appeal to the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Artsakh to take necessary measures in this regard and to disclose the truth with the corresponding criminal-legal qualification.'

'In fact, the matters surrounding the actions of the law enforcement agencies should have long included the publication of certain segments of the speech of the head of the Security Council regarding state and service secrets in the November 6, 2020 meeting, which is information preserved and protected by the state.'

'Throughout my entire state, military, political, and public activities, I have been guided exclusively by my own ideas and conscience. I approach the phenomena attributed to me with understanding, as those circles who are constantly guided by various centers cannot believe in the possibility of having free and unconstrained thought. Respecting everyone’s right to express themselves, I remain convinced that this notion is not synonymous with slander and false denunciation; one’s rights cannot be exercised at the expense of another’s rights.'