Suren Papikyan's Sensational Statement

The newspaper 'Hraparak' writes: Yesterday, Defense Minister Suren Papikyan made what can be called a sensational statement during a government meeting regarding the cancellation of three-month military gatherings, announcing a transition to a 25-day gathering regime.

He stated, "Citizens will undergo training for 7 days, followed by 14 days of combat duty. Soon, there will be a regulation, and we will announce it. The upcoming gatherings will be 25-day events; we are moving away from three-month gatherings. However, this will apply to all conscripted citizens of Armenia as mandatory."

As people tried to understand what this meant, those familiar with military service explained that this implies that all men who have never served, who have never held a weapon, and who are older than 50, including those who served 10-15-20 years ago, will be called for gatherings and, if necessary, to guard the borders.

More details in today's issue of the newspaper.