ArmInfo.The Ministry of Defense of Armenia made a statement in connection with the negative public reaction to the message about the reduction of obsolete military equipment.
Thus, the press secretary of the Ministry of Defense of Armenia Artsrun Hovhannisyan on his Facebook page, in particular, wrote: "On the disposal of military equipment ... we are talking about the equipment taken out of service for more than a decade, from which everything possible was removed for use, and used. Recycling is important for us both in terms of cost savings and their optimal use. This will allow us to get other resources. The program has been implemented by Armenia for a long time and within the framework of international obligations. "
As ArmInfo previously reported Germany assisted Armenia on reduction of 21 armored combat vehicles, which have lost their combat significance. In this regard, the German Embassy in Armenia on behalf of the Government of Germany congratulated Armenia. "Through this effort, Armenia is now in compliance with the threshold for armored combat vehicles set by the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE Treaty). This treaty is an important pillar of security in Europe and the South Caucasus," the statement also reads. "The reduction has been made possible through a NATO Partnership for Peace Trust Fund project with Germany as the lead nation. Germany has provided more than 1 million EUR for this project and stands ready to assist other state parties in order to achieve full compliance with the provisions under the CFE treaty" said a statement from the German Embassy in Armenia, received by ArmInfo.
The embassy also reminded that the disposal of obsolete military equipment was carried out within the framework of the NATO Partnership for Peace program and Germany was its main implementer "The German Embassy now look ahead to the remaining steps of the Trust Fund project which include the demilitarization, dismantling and disposal of 140 armored vehicles as well as the establishment of an Explosive Remnants of War and Mine Risk Education (ERW/MRE) capability within the Armenian Centre for Humanitarian Demining and Expertise."