Armenians will never back away from country's defense – opinions

In an interview with Tert.am, two veterans of the Nagorno-Karabakh war - Deputy Director of the National Academy’s Institute of Literature Vardan Devrikyan and singer David Amalayan - addressed he recent subvsersive act provoked by the Azerbaijanis along the Line of Contact with Nagorno-Karabakh and the border with Armenia, and the public reaction to such developments. As intellectuals who have come through the hardships of war, they both presented, conventionally speaking, an “exemplary model” of public perceptions.

No one will leave military positions; our nation’s collective instinct works, but regretably enough, the Turk “explains” it to us every time

The literary critics said that his heart overflows with sadness every time he reads Defense Ministry reports about the feats of our soldiers killed and wounded in retaliatory operations against Azerbaijani subversive groups.

“When our defense guard, Armen Hovhannisyan, was killed in January, I thought to myself, ‘what power does one really need for such a feat?’ So it’s the sum effect of our nation’s collective instinct that begins working. Do you remember many would say – at age 18-20 – that they will put aside weapons once shootings erupt? I have always warned against saying things as absurd as that; no one is going to step aside from a military position,” he said.

Devrikyan added that he doesn’t believe things of the kind are “psychologically perceived” in the Armenian society. “It would have been better, of course, if those clashes didn’t occur, but all that came to prove that it isn’t possible to bring our nation to its knees,” he said, further expressing regret that “the Turk every time teaches us a lesson”.

Addressing the recent developments, Amalyan said the information about them in the news headlines have led him to two major conclusions: that the Armenian army is powerful, and that there is an internal enthusiasm.

“Statements about subversive acts provoke extremely negative feelings in terms of the losses suffered, but there is an internal enthusiasm, as our army’s strength is obvious. Also, there is the willingness of our society and nation,” he noted.

Armenian Armed Forces not only not only prove equal with technical-military tasks but also ensure the country’s foreign policy: Lessons learned from subversive attacks

Devrikyan said he thinks that in the present circumstances that see “foreign political signals seeking to intimidate the country” and use coercions, the Armenian army solves not only technical-military problems, but also secures the country’s foreign policy. The literary critic believes that it is dominant the trend in the entire bipolar world, not just in the Armenian-Azerbaijani relations.

As regards military-technical problems, the war veteran said he finds that the regular army’s ability to solve all the existing problems is its greatest achievement today. According to him, the Armed Forces of Armenia are now powerful enought to resolve technical-military problems, being aware of the situation internally.

Positive dynamics in the society’s psychological perception of the enemy’s image

Devrikyan said he has observed a positive dynamics in the public perceptions since the Azerbaijani subversive group’s border infiltration attempt about a month ago.

“There was initially a little skepticism, as [nobody believed] that a saboteur could have such a rotund figure as that. That’s a kind of psychological phenomenon which I have spoken of in my press conferences before. We identify the army with the authorities and think that the military’s success or positive [gains] are the authorities’ achievements. But after the recent incidents - as it became clear that every Armenian and every citizen of Armenia is in Azerbaijan’s target and that the shootings are not  directed against the authorities or a specific [political] party - the accentuations changed to a certain degree. And I find that it is better to observe extreme national-liberation moods rather than nihilism and feigned attempts to protect human rights," he added.

Amalyan said he is sure that abstention from panic is the most powerful weapon. “I am confident there will be no war. Let’s not consider this boastfulness on our part or on the part of our state; it is better to keep our heads bowed but feel powerful instead,” he added.

We have an enemy named “Turk”

Asked about the cause of the border incidents, Amalyan gave a very brief answer. “All that is because we have an enemy named ‘Turk’. And what’s even worse, we have an enemy lying in the ambush: that’s the Russian. So don’t make me open my mouth. Those people do not want it; they are forced into [attacking] us. So they come and later leave defeated. And the more they come and go defeated, the closer we will be to peace,” said the singer war veteran.