YEREVAN. – Shant 2018 military drills are being held in Armenia. The first briefing was held with the participation of representatives of key state agencies.

According to the spokesperson for Defense Minister Artsrun Hovhannisyan, as at 14 hours, the operational situation is as follows: the situation in the region has worsened, the enemy began to accumulate forces at the border, both sides suffered losses.

There was a threat of a refugees’ flow, and penetration of terrorists along with them. The situation was reported to the Prime Minister. He gave specific orders.

According to the spokesperson for Armenian Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan, the headquarters, led by Deputy Minister Shavarsh Kocharyan, is being set up. The Armenian embassies abroad and international organizations, including the CSTO and the OSCE, have been informed.

Foreign States Envoys are summoned to the Armenian Foreign Ministry to get acquainted with the situation and Armenian position, as well as with the possible escalation of the situation. CSTO colleagues are considering the possibility of convening a Collective Security Council.

General Secretary of the International Organization of La Francophonie Michaëlle Jean is in Armenia these days, who, in fact “participated” in drills.

According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, two state of emergency were recorded: a foreign citizen was detained at the airport (presumably a Russian citizen) with an explosive, and large fire broke out in the Armavir region.

The drills are supervised by the Prime Minister, while the headquarters is headed by the head of the government staff.