An Independence Day celebration doesn’t imply a military parade, just like a person doesn’t celebrate his birthday the same way all the time. This is what deputy of the “Civil Contract” faction of the National Assembly of Armenia Sergey Bagratyan told reporters today after he was asked why there was a “vivid” event instead of a military parade on Independence Day.

“Don’t rush, and you will see that Armenia will show its strength in due time,” he said.

When told that the presses had reported that $110,000 was spent to operate drones for 10 minutes and that the money could have been geared towards soldiers’ healthcare, the deputy noted that if the government had distributed the supposed amount among soldiers, every soldier would receive a small amount, but soldiers and their parents need to be encouraged. “Soldiers need to be sure that the government supports them,” he added.