Relatives of missing soldiers confronted lawmakers in a tense session held in Armenia’s National Assembly on March 31. The closed-door discussion, which included top security and defense officials, ended with families expressing frustration over the lack of concrete answers.
Asked by reporters whether they had received any clear responses, the relatives unanimously replied negatively, according to Panorama.am .
“For 4.5 years we’ve had no answers, they’re just stalling,” said Anahit Adoyan, mother of missing serviceman Vardan Adoyan. “We presented evidence—wrong DNA matches, cases of forced disappearances—but nothing. I told them they’re sloppy workers, that’s all.”
Another parent added, “They’re all unresponsible, all of them.”
National Security Service director and the deputy defense minister were also present. The meeting reportedly took place in an emotionally charged atmosphere, with shouting heard in the chamber. Justice Minister Srbuhi Galyan left visibly upset. Later reports said a verbal clash occurred between the relatives and independent MP Gegham Nazaryan.
Following the meeting, MP Andranik Kocharyan responded to the criticisms, claiming all concerns had been addressed. “Seven hours of just stalling? Every question was answered at different levels. Whether the answers satisfy them is another matter,” he said. “The real issue is organizing our work effectively to get answers. If our aim was just to stall, this wouldn’t have been our second meeting.”
Tigran Abrahamyan, secretary of the I Have Honor parliamentary group, criticized the session in a Facebook post. While officials attempted to present progress on the cases, he argued that the actual dialogue showed otherwise.
“In my view, the officials were simulating action rather than genuinely addressing the legitimate concerns raised,” he wrote. “The emotional tension was inevitable—there’s no way to remain indifferent to the anguish of families whose loved ones went off to defend the country and never returned.”
