Legislative Changes Proposed in the Field of External Intelligence Services

The government has proposed amendments and additions to the laws on "External Intelligence Operations and External Intelligence Service" and "Operational-Intelligence Activities" along with several related laws.

The head of the National Security Service of Armenia, Kristine Grigoryan, has informed that after the adoption of the law regulating the sector by the National Assembly, there is a need for refinement and legal clarification.

It is proposed to regulate the relations concerning the appointment or transfer of service members to higher, equal, or lower positions. The legislation of the Republic of Armenia provides for paternity leave. A similar regulation is proposed to be included in the legal relationships of the service.

It is also suggested to establish a legal basis for defining the conditions and procedures under which the service member will have the opportunity or right to use weapons and special measures.

A requirement will be established stating that only citizens of the Republic of Armenia can be appointed as heads or deputies of the service. Currently, there is a legal possibility to appoint dual citizens as well.

The service carries out the measure of "Monitoring of Telephone Communications." It is proposed to legally allow the service to conduct operational-intelligence activities for monitoring digital, including telephone communications, independently and with its own operational-technical infrastructure.

The next regulations concern the personnel reserve, the minimum service period and compensation for retraining and vocational training courses, the establishment of class ranks, social guarantees for employees, and more.

The positive conclusion of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Defense and Security was presented by Andranik Kocharyan. According to the committee chairman, the law adopted in 2022 has provided our country with an opportunity to establish a new security structure.