The identity of the serviceman of Armenian armed forces, who voluntarily crossed to the Azerbaijani side on Mar.22, has been established, Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said on Mar.23.
The identity of the Armenian serviceman, who voluntarily surrendered to the Azerbaijani side on Mar.22, has been established, Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said on March 23.
He is Andranik Grigoryan, born in 1991, according to the ministry.
During the interrogation, Grigoryan said he surrendered to the Azerbaijani side because he feared a senseless death. The Armenian soldier also said that several servicemen were also planning to surrender to the Azerbaijani side, but he did it before them.
“I don’t know anything about the fate of the others,” he said.
Grigoryan also talked about the terrible situation prevailing in the units of the Armenian armed forces, the lack of weapons and food, and conflicts among the servicemen.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council`s four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
Andranik Grigoryan said: “I voluntarily surrendered to the Azerbaijani side. My act has a very simple reason. I’m afraid of senseless death. They bit me. I wanted to get rid of them. I don`t want to fight. I want to live. We were two. My friend Mkirtinyan also wanted to surrender voluntarily."
Armenian serviceman voluntarily surrendered to Azerbaijan: I
23 March 2015
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