PRECIOUS AND DEAR LAND

Colonel Ashot Sargsyan started his military career at the Monte Melkonyan Military School, then studied at the Vazgen Sargsyan Military University, then graduated from a Russian Academy. He served in various parts of the border, held a number of positions, demonstrating special skills and abilities of the military.

Since 2019, Colonel Ashot Sargsyan has been leading one of the artillery units.

During the 44-day war, the subdivisions of the military unit were involved in military operations, fighting in both the northern and southern parts of Artsakh.

The officers and soldiers of the military unit speak with respect about the commander, it is a vivid example of courage and unbreakable will, we are ready to overcome any problem with such a commander.

The commander speaks about the staff with the same assessment.

-All my decisions during the combat operations were made with confidence in the psychological, physical and professional training of our personnel. The inspiration of our 18-20 year olds, the determination to fight knew no bounds. You should have seen how correctly and competently they reacted to the actions of the enemy, everyone knew his task clearly and did it perfectly. The boys fought as if they had been engulfed in a thousand years of fighting, going to their deaths without hesitation to perform a combat mission … I can list many examples of courage … During the combat operation, there was a moment when one of the batteries was completely out of order. When it came out, I set a task for the personnel of the given battery to go to the safer zone for a while, until it was replenished with military equipment. At dawn we were hit by the enemy, we had casualties, they reported the names of the victims and they also read the name of the soldier whose crew I had asked to leave the safe zone the day before. Artilleryman Hovhannes Sardaryan … When the car was moving them to a relatively safe place under a torrent of direct fire, he stopped the car on the way, got off and walked back to another battery in the dark of night, helping the local staff and died …

Thus, both the conscripts and the officers fought with selfless devotion. The female servicemen of our military unit were also fully involved in the combat operations and performed the set tasks excellently …

– Every combat operation is an experience, and a unique “test” for the military. “The artillery inflicted significant losses on the enemy in this unequal balance of power,” the commander said at the end of the conversation, adding: “The personnel of the military unit also took part in the July confrontation.” After each combat operation, we analyze in detail both the observed shortcomings and the positive sides, and draw the appropriate conclusions. Professional, tactical training is always in the center of attention. Every minute, every second is used purposefully and effectively, aimed at improving knowledge and combat skills.

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The morale of the personnel is one of the most important components of the army’s combat effectiveness. We are also talking to the deputy commander of the military unit, lieutenant colonel Arthur Hayrapetyan.

– On October 5, 2020 I was assigned to this military unit, with the staff, soldiers, you could say, I got acquainted on the battlefield. The military unit performed its task with honor, unfortunately, we also had losses and wounded. The death of each friend filled the souls of the fighters with revenge, and how they fought, putting each other’s lives above their own. One of the officers was seriously wounded, and I bled so much that until he evacuated his last wounded soldier, he did not leave the battlefield, moreover, we forced him out, he said, how can I leave my boys alone …

The lieutenant colonel also emphasizes that after the war the soldiers serve more honorably, trying not to make mistakes in any issue.

– Our soldiers roasted and matured in the fire.

“We have no shortage of hero boys,” adds Major Armen Khachatryan, the deputy commander of the division. “We have sergeants who fought on their own after the battery commander was wounded, and so skillfully, so professionally that no one felt that an officer was in that area.” does not exist

Junior Sergeant Davit Avetisyan is one of the soldiers who replaced the wounded commander.

– We have been at the forefront in Jrakan since October 5. As soon as we arrived, the battery commander, Captain Vazgen Kirakosyan, instructed us to get ready quickly, we had to shoot. We thought he was joking, we did not realize the seriousness of the moment yet. When the first projectile fell a little far from us, we only deeply understood the whole reality, and when our comrades-in-arms were killed, I can not describe in words what happened … One of the first victims was my friend Narek Manukyan …

There was blood all around, wounded … The commander of our battery was also wounded, his hands and feet were completely bloody, he called an ambulance for the wounded boys with a radio, but he did not want to. Whom to leave the battlefield, forcing them to take …

Davit, Volodyan Avagyan for counting, Armen Hayrumyan, sniper, and Andranik Avagyan, from the reserve, complemented each other and started solving the problem.

– We were preparing four “Grad” for fire at once, and we were able to do all that clearly and unmistakably thanks to what our battery commander taught us. When we fired, we shouted, “These are our dead boys, you will not digest their blood … And when they called, they informed us that the target had been hit or that we had destroyed a subversive group. I was, only my father was aware …

After the service, David will continue his studies at the Department of Information Technology of the Polytechnic University. He says that in civil life he will try to be useful to the army with his knowledge, and if a fight is provoked, he is ready to stand by the defenders of the homeland …

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The commander of the battery communication detachment, junior sergeant Sergey Hakobyan was at the forefront from the very first day of the war. Sergey speaks about the importance of communication on the battlefield. There is no connection, there is no governance, there are no agreed actions. He did his best to make the connection uninterrupted and fast.

– They gave orders to control the fire, we received the orders and passed them to the battery so that the latter would do the job.

There was no day or night, there was no rest, they acted so fast that they did not delay the fire for a minute, every second was important, decisive …

– On October 11, there was a heavy shelling, there was a combat vehicle left in our area, and it was in a very bad condition. But in one day we repaired what problem there was with the electricity, we solved it and performed the task of several combat vehicles with that equipment, – junior sergeant Hakobyan remembers episodes from the war days.

“After the war, many values ​​have been reinterpreted,” says Sergey. “The love and devotion to the Homeland has become stronger.” We have kept this country, on this land is the blood of our friends, and the land is now more expensive and dear …

By ALIS ALAVERDYAN

Photos by AREG VARDANYAN