ArmInfo. The bill on buying out service in the Armenian Armed Forces will not be included in the agenda of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia. There were no votes "for" the document, 87 deputies voted against with 1 abstention.
As the head of the ruling Civil Contract faction Hayk Konjoryan stated at the NA session on June 17, the issue of reforming the country's armed forces is constantly in the center of attention of the authorities, but in the form in which it was presented, it is unacceptable for the ruling force.
It is curious that among those who voted against was the author of the legislative initiative, the National Assembly deputy from the ruling Civil Contract faction Hayk Sargsyan.
The bill envisaged reducing the term of service in the Armenian Armed Forces from 24 months to 18 months. The stumbling block for the deputies, including those from the ruling faction, was the initiative of the NA deputy Hayk Sargsyan, who proposed the possibility of buying off service for a tidy sum. For example, 24 million drams could be paid for a term of service of 1 month, 20 million drams for 4 months, and 15 million drams for the renunciation of citizenship by males under 18. According to the author of the legislative initiative, the country has recently seen an outflow of conscripts. If a few years ago about 30 thousand people were called up for military service, today this figure has dropped to 20 thousand. One of the problematic issues continues to be the issue of renunciation of citizenship by males under 18 years of age. Many are also exempted from service due to illnesses. Ultimately, analyzing the number of citizens called up for military service over the past 10 years, it becomes clear that only 30-40 percent of conscripts are ultimately called up. In order to stop this process, it is proposed to establish a state fee of 15 million drams for citizens who intend to change their citizenship. Only after paying this amount will citizens be able to renounce their citizenship.