Military Service Duration Reduced Due to Increase in Contract Servicemen, Says Papikyan

The duration of mandatory military service is being reduced due to an increase in the number of contract servicemen. This was announced today by Armenia's Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan during a question-and-answer session with the government in parliament, responding to a question from Lilit Minasyan, a member of the Civil Contract faction.

Just the day before, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that a law reducing the duration of mandatory military service would come into effect on January 1, 2026, decreasing the service period from the previous 24 months to 18 months.

According to Papikyan, the government has committed to reducing the duration of mandatory military service as a result of increasing the number of contract servicemen. “The second document is the concept of transforming the Armenian army, where we have also taken a similar commitment. I believe it is already clear what kind of long-term planning results this entails,” said Papikyan.

The Minister added that the success of the program depends on whether the authorities can increase the number of contract servicemen in the coming years.

Papikyan emphasized that two and a half years ago, the Armenian parliament adopted a law allowing contracts to be signed with the Ministry of Defense after six months of mandatory service. Today, many soldiers are tying their futures to the army through the “Defender of the Fatherland” program, which has seen their numbers reach several thousand. Therefore, the Minister dismissed claims that reducing the service period would also decrease the number of servicemen in the army as absurd.