On September 15-18, at the training center “Zar” military exercises of one of the infantry battalions (commander – Colonel Vasak Avetisyan) of MoD peacekeeping brigade were held within the NATO “Partnership for Peace” program. According to the specific requirements of NATO, the unit’s combat training, as well as equipment, weapons and other means of the rear have been tested.

There was fog, visibility – a few meters. I took charge at 16:00 and it was already 10-15 minutes, that me, private Hayk Hakobyan, was responsible for the section of the border zone. It was not the first time for me on the positions, internally I was calm, admiring the beauty of nature and making observations. And suddenly in the fog I noticed three moving points. Using the fog, they were trying to quietly move closer to our positions. What to do? It is necessary to make the right decision.

From a distance, I notice the heroes of my essay – teacher of the Department of physical training and sports of the Military Institute after Vazgen Sargsyan, Lieutenant Colonel Armen Hovhannisyan, his middle son – Lieutenant Arthur, a former student of the higher military school of the Russian Federation and the youngest of the family – 5-year-old Artyom. Elder son of Armen Hovhannisyan, Ara, is a platoon commander, carrying out combat duty at a military unit, the son of his brother David, volunteered to serve on the front line.

I graduated with Honors from the Faculty of Economics and Management of companies in the communications sector of the Yerevan Polytechnic Institute, then did 1-year officers’ training courses at the Military Aviation Institute after Armenak Khanperyants, and in 2013 I was appointed to serve in the military unit under the command of Lieutenant Colonel K.Darbinyan.
I have already served 2 years, the last year remains, but I have already decided to extend my contract. I made this decision because of the battalion command, warm situation, and finally, the conditions of service.

Today, only form the village of Upper Dvin 30 young Assyrians serve in the Armenian army, serve with honor and devotion. After all, for them Armenia is a place of birth, a second home.
The Assyrians among the population of Armenia are ranked third among ethnic minorities, after the Yezidis and Russians. In Armenia there are Assyrian communities in Dvin, Arzni, Dimitrov New Artagers.
The biggest Assyrian community is in Northern Iraq. There are communities also in Syria, Lebanon, Turkey.