Arrest warrant issued for former defense minister Arshak Karapetyan

By Siranush Adamyan

Armenia’s Investigative Committee on Tuesday announced completing the pretrial investigation into a criminal case involving Arshak Karapetyan, the country’s former defence minister.

Karapetyan has been accused of abuse of power during border clashes against Azerbaijan in May 2021, while serving as First Deputy Chief of Armenia’s General Staff. He currently resides in Russia.

The probe concluded that on May 12, 2021, Azerbaijani forces crossed about three kilometers into Armenian territory near Lake Sev in the southernmost Syunik region, taking advantage of foggy conditions. Between May 14 and 16, Karapetyan allegedly abused his authority by giving an unwarranted verbal order to withdraw troops from defensive positions, an act that, investigators say, led to the loss of strategic positions later occupied by Azerbaijani forces.

Karapetyan was appointed defense minister later that year, but was removed after just three months following a separate border clash. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan later revealed that Karapetyan was dismissed because he failed to inform him in time about the Azerbaijani incursion.

Karapetyan served in the Armenian Armed Forces from 1993 to 2021. In 2024, he founded a political party called Pan-Armenian Front and has since been a vocal critic of the Armenian government.