Employees of Artsakh's NSS to Work in Armenia's NSS

Employees of the National Security Service (NSS) of Artsakh will have the opportunity to work in the NSS of Armenia. This decision was made during the government meeting today.

It was noted that after the events in Nagorno-Karabakh, many employees of the Artsakh National Security Service expressed a wish to continue their service within the NSS of Armenia.

According to Article 14 of the law on service in national security bodies, only citizens of the Republic of Armenia can take up service in the NSS of Armenia. However, according to point 1 and point 3 of the decision No. 1864-N of the Government of Armenia dated October 26, 2023, individuals registered as residents of Nagorno-Karabakh have been temporarily placed under the protection of the Government and recognized as refugees. Nevertheless, even if former employees of the Artsakh NSS acquire Armenian citizenship, taking into account age restrictions, they will only have the opportunity to be admitted to junior and middle-level positions within the NSS as new entrants.

Some of the candidates wishing to serve in the NSS of Armenia have held senior or leading positions in the Artsakh NSS and have had high military ranks, and acquiring Armenian citizenship will not be sufficient for them to be appointed to positions equivalent to those they held in the Artsakh NSS.

Based on the above, there is a need to make relevant amendments to the law on service in national security bodies, which will allow individuals who held positions in the National Security Service of Artsakh as of September 19, 2023, to continue their service in the NSS of Armenia if they meet the requirements for appointment to those positions.

In particular, according to the provisions of Article 19, part 6.1 of the law on service in national security bodies, when a vacancy occurs in a state authority, employees of other bodies (such as the Armed Forces, Ministry of Internal Affairs, etc.) may also be admitted to service and appointed to the position. The draft proposes to provide the opportunity to continue service in the NSS of Armenia for those who held positions in the National Security Service of Artsakh as of September 19, 2023, when a position becomes available.