25 September – this is the day that turned me into a different reality, this is the day when I really felt that I am a military… – tells chief of northeastern artillery military unit, Lieutenant Colonel Armen Sargsyan. – On this day, the enemy used grenade launchers of 60 and 82mm caliber. We received orders to return fire to suppress the firing points. That was my first combat action. In 2-3 hours we shot 60 mines. If from the enemy’s 10 shots 2 were aimed, in our case it was 7 of 10.

Berdavan village is just a few hundred meters away from the enemy. We are accompanied by the deputy commander of the military unit, Lieutenant Colonel Manuk Badalyan who says that vineyard is just around the military unit directly under the gun of the enemy, so it is not safe to work in the garden, to collect harvest. Spouses Aprikyans treated us with grapes, and it seemed to me that this grape has a very different flavor.

In the RA MoD Military Institute after Vazgen Sargsyan Institute-school cooperation stands on a solid foundation. In order to promote military-patriotic education of the younger generation, the Military Institute often organizes classes, competitions, Olympiads, provided by the subject “Basic military training”, as well as excursions, during which pupils get acquainted with the life of the students, with stimulators and training weapons.

After the end of the relevant courses of the Military Aviation Institute after Marshal Armenak Khanperyants, I and my classmate Dzyunik Aveyan enlisted in the air-defense forces.
The most important one was the first day, and it began wonderfully, the command staff received us warmly. At that moment, I was the happiest person in the world. Our arrival at the military unit coincided with the trainings, and, as they say, without foreplay we entered the military life. We were all equal, but representatives of the “weaker sex” were always under scrutiny of the officers. With their guidance and advice commander of the military unit, Colonel M.Sahakyan, his deputy, Lt. Colonel G.Nazaretyan, Colonels G.Zeynalyan, Kh.Torosyan helped us a lot.

Brothers Thovmas and Petros were saved from Vardanyan big family and settled in the village of Davitashen of Talin region. Tumo and Peto were famous storytellers. In the long winter evenings the villagers gathered around them and listened to their tales, stories. Sometimes they fell silent and faintly uttered, “Oh, my beloved country,” and everyone knew that they again remembered village Akhund of Sasun and the holy relics which were left there.

When I returned from the army, it was 1988. The movement for the liberation of Artsakh just began. I was very interested in what happens. In all this there was something fantastic, was a powerful energy. My classmate had a camera. And I started to shoot. It was very interesting: like you’re in a crowd, but at the same time you look to everything from aside. I thought: “Maybe now something I do not understand, but after 10 years maybe I’ll understand.” Then I started to send these tapes to Moscow, America, Germany, France, so many would know what is going on here, I began to collaborate with CBS News and the BBC as an independent journalist. This is how was my entrance into the documentary.

It was the 22nd, or 23rd January, 1993. Two Azerbaijani helicopters opened fire in the direction of the church “Yerits mankunq”, they thought we have hidden there. From the dome the huge cross fell down and broke. The commander of our Special forces group Shahen Meghryan said that we need to restore the cross. And there we all gave word that we’ll set up the cross on its place. Before departure I photographed all of them, and the war took us to different roads.