We took $8 billion in debt to buy weapons, says Pashinyan

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has responded to criticism over the increase in foreign debt, noting that a significant portion of the borrowed funds was directed toward purchasing urgently needed weapons for the Armenian Armed Forces.

“You say, The foreign debt has increased by $8 billion, what have you done? Don’t you know what we have done? Well, we bought weapons. We bought weapons on credit because we needed them urgently and all at once,” Pashinyan said.

The Prime Minister added that he is ready to show the acquired weapons and compare them with the military equipment that was in the army during previous administrations.

Pashinyan also reminded that part of the borrowed funds had been used to help the country overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Don’t you know there was a coronavirus? We took out loans so that the country could overcome the pandemic during the war,” he concluded.