Gabrielyanov: I Told Onik That Serious People from Moscow Are Suggesting to Remove the Army from the Streets

Aram Gabrielyanov, an ethnic Armenian and Russian media manager, founder of the News media holding, has made revelations regarding former Chief of Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Onik Gasparyan, who is considered an undesirable person in Armenia and denied entry to the country.

In a post on his Facebook page, Gabrielyanov stated that immediately after the defeat in the war, he met with Onik Gasparyan in Moscow. This occurred right after a letter from commanders regarding Gasparyan.

“I told Onik that serious people from Moscow are suggesting to remove the army from the streets and hand over power to a temporary government, and I would provide informational support. Onik replied, ‘Let Moscow issue a direct command, and I will remove the troops.’ I said, ‘No one will give a direct order,’ and we parted ways. You already know the rest,” wrote Gabrielyanov, adding that “one’s hypocrisy and lies, combined with another’s cowardice, are tightly intertwined and are smothering Armenia.”

Earlier, former Chief of Staff Onik Gasparyan made several comments in response to statements made by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan during a parliamentary inquiry regarding his comments and proposals during the Security Council meeting on August 14, 2020. He also noted, “Regarding the statement of the General Staff on February 25, 2021, I affirm with full responsibility that I made the decision personally, assessing the military-political situation in the region. My decisions had no connections with any official or unofficial circles of any other state or with internal political forces. I also attach importance to the fact that I did not exert pressure on any official.”

It should be noted that after the war, the leadership of the General Staff, including Onik Gasparyan and the commanders of the corps, made a statement demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. The spokesperson for the Secretary of the Security Council also commented on Gasparyan's statements, noting, “Onik Gasparyan has distorted his report made during the Security Council meeting on August 14, 2020, in his statement on June 28. During that day’s meeting, Gasparyan specifically stated that we are able to repel the enemy's attack by the principle of ‘not one step back’ with the available forces and resources in the Eastern and Northeastern operational directions, without emphasizing the factor of Turkey. He provided information about the balance of forces in the Nakhchivan and Turkish operational directions and indicated the problems. He also noted that he sees solutions to most of the problems within the framework of the establishment and formation of a militia. The Security Council approved all the proposals regarding the solutions to the issues that Onik Gasparyan proposed during that day’s meeting.

Later, during the 44-day war, Armenia did not have the military problems that Gasparyan had mentioned in the Nakhchivan and Turkish operational directions. Despite this, under Mr. Gasparyan's leadership, the Armed Forces were unable to ensure the fulfillment of their obligations and promises taken before the Security Council to repel the enemy's attack, fail it, and defeat its formations by the ‘not one step back’ principle with the available forces and resources.”