“Armenia is preparing for the 21th century wars”
The Armenian Center for National and International Studies (ACNIS) today hosted a discussion on "Assessment of the Regional Balance of Power."
"Azerbaijan is constantly threatening the regional security," ACNIS Director Richard Giragosian said in his remarks.
"The Russian-Georgian war of 2008 further deepened military instability in the region," he added. "With the contest of armament getting tenser in the region, Armenia acts as a defensive force."
According to Western specialists, "the armed forces of Armenia and Karabakh are the strongest in the region." Meanwhile, Richard Giragosian says the Azerbaijani army is not carrying out reforms though huge sums are allotted to the army.
"Even if Azerbaijan decides to launch military reform right now, it can reach the level of the Armenian army in some 8 or 10 years. Armenia and Karabakh are preparing for the wars of the 21th century and Azerbaijan cannot catch up with them," Mr. Giragosian said.
At the same time, he emphasized that the army reorganization in Azerbaijan is unnoticeable, since the country's Defense Ministry is a corrupt authority. From the psychological point of view, Azerbaijani army is in a grave state since it has no respect in the country. The reason is that Heydar Aliyev brought up his son instilling fear about the army.
"He told his son that the main obstacle in his way was the army. That is why Azerbaijani armed forces remain weak and badly financed."
Regarding the Russian-Georgian conflict of 2008, Mr. Giragosian noted that Georgia lost the war as it overestimated its military abilities. The war was a good lesson for Georgia as they learnt that "they cannot win a war with the beautiful uniforms presented by the USA."
