“Today we are developing our army at a very high pace, but we are also developing the concept on which our army is based,” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated today during the debates on the draft law “On the State Budget of the Republic of Armenia for 2026” in the National Assembly.

“We say that our army has no tasks to carry out outside the internationally recognized sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia. We even consider it very important that in our daily work discussions we transform and reframe the concept of a ‘combat-ready army’ into a ‘defense-capable army.’ Because when you say ‘combat-ready army,’ it does not specify where that potential combat occurs or where it could occur. It is very important for us to emphasize this context that the army of the Republic of Armenia must be ‘defense-capable,’ meaning it must be capable of defending the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and security of the citizens of the Republic of Armenia.

Moreover, I want to stress that this is the obligation of every state under international law: to ensure the security of its own citizens, including from possible external interventions,” Pashinyan emphasized.