VIDEO: There Are Political Figures Whose Grandchildren Are Born Abroad to Avoid Military Service, Papikyan

We have political figures whose children and grandchildren are specifically born abroad to obtain citizenship and exempt themselves from military service in Armenia. The Minister of Defense of Armenia, Suren Papikyan, stated this during a session of the National Assembly.

It should be noted that ruling party member Shirak Torosyan suggested to Papikyan to reconsider the law stipulating that if a foreign citizen under the age of 27 acquires Armenian citizenship, they are subject to conscription. However, according to Torosyan, a foreign citizen who does not have permanent residence in Armenia and has served in a foreign army should not be conscripted upon acquiring Armenian citizenship.

“We have had discussions regarding this issue. It is a pressing problem, but everything is not so straightforward. We have political figures whose children or grandchildren are specifically born abroad to gain citizenship and be exempt from service in Armenia. I understand that we are talking about the Armenians from Javakhk and those Armenians who have already served abroad, but there are other issues here as well,” Papikyan noted.

According to him, this issue will be addressed in the future.