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Eleven deaths have been recorded in the Armenian Armed Forces in 2026, five of them involving conscripts.
Armenian Defence Ministry spokesperson Aram Torosyan told Armenpress that deaths should be considered in the context of circumstances related and unrelated to military service, stressing that each case is subject to separate analysis and discussion.
“The Ministry of Defence is the only institution that also makes public the deaths of people within its structure that occur in circumstances unrelated to their service. In other words, you will not find another institution that, for example, publishes at the end of the year data on an employee or service member who dies suddenly at home, is killed in a road accident or dies from an illness,” Torosyan said.
According to him, statistics published in previous years have been subject to various forms of manipulation.
“We often see media reports saying that 30 deaths were recorded in the army during the year, but no one says how many of those 30 deaths actually occurred in the army, which were related to service and how many were unrelated to service. Even if the deaths were related to service, were they all murders and suicides or not?” the Defence Ministry spokesperson said.
He stressed that claims of an increase in deaths in the army were not supported by the statistics available to the Defence Ministry.
“If we are talking about the reporting period of this year, we have had 11 deaths, only five of which involved conscripts. We have had deaths resulting from illness and a mine explosion, while regarding the suicides that occurred this year, I should note that only three of them occurred in circumstances related, so to speak, to military service,” Torosyan said.
According to him, preliminary information concerning cases of suicide and incitement to suicide indicates that some were linked to personal and other reasons rather than non-statutory relations.
Torosyan said statements by various political and public figures concerning military deaths often argue that the Ministry of Defence should assume responsibility.
“Far be it from me to suggest otherwise; we bear that responsibility. We are responsible for incidents occurring in the army in circumstances related to military service. But statistics are also available for cases recorded at all times and in all years,” he said.
According to the Defence Ministry spokesperson, deaths should be examined in greater depth and should not become a subject of political speculation.
Presenting statistics from different years, he said that, for example, 15 cases of murder, suicide and incitement to suicide in circumstances related to military service were recorded in 2007, compared with 19 in 2016.
“In 2025, no murders were recorded at all. Six deaths in circumstances related to military service were recorded, of which, if I am not mistaken, two were cases of incitement to suicide,” Torosyan said.
According to him, two of the 11 deaths recorded during the reporting period of 2026 occurred in circumstances related to military service. He said two murders, two cases of incitement to suicide and four suicides had been recorded.
“But of these six — that is, the cases of suicide and incitement to suicide — three did not occur as a result of non-statutory relations,” he said.
Torosyan stressed that the army is an integral part of society and that problems within the armed forces should be viewed in a broader context.
He said 179 suicides were recorded across Armenia in 2024, 199 in 2025 and 94 in the first half of 2026.
“We look at these problems in much greater depth. Moreover, every such case is subject to separate analysis and discussion, and we approach each case individually,” the Defence Ministry spokesperson said.
Addressing statements issued regarding the deaths of service members, Torosyan said such cases are usually announced by both the Armenian Ministry of Defence and the Investigative Committee. At the same time, given the specific circumstances of some cases, the Ministry of Defence cannot assume the role of making assessments.
He also rejected claims that the Armenian Ministry of Defence does not offer condolences to the families of deceased service members.
“Many of our representatives are in contact with the families of service members in connection with these tragic events. They are all representatives of the Armenian Ministry of Defence who express their support and condolences to the parents of our service members,” Torosyan said.
Addressing efforts to prevent deaths, the Defence Ministry spokesperson said a range of measures are implemented on a daily basis to prevent murders, suicides and attempted incitement to suicide among service members.
“When conducting oversight in military units, particular attention is paid to preventing self-harm and suicide. Appropriate work is carried out with service members in risk groups,” he said.
According to Torosyan, methodological guidelines for preventing self-harm, suicide and non-statutory relations have been developed and put into practice.
Weekly analytical and informational materials are prepared and distributed to military units to ensure a rapid response to accidents and incidents and prevent their recurrence. The materials are discussed so that conclusions can be drawn and effective measures taken.
According to him, instructions, circulars and directives are also regularly sent to the armed forces to ensure that explanatory, moral, educational and legal-awareness work is carried out with personnel assigned to duty, as well as to assess their psychological and emotional state.
Torosyan said preventing non-statutory relations is one of the issues on the agenda of annual meetings aimed at improving discipline in the armed forces.
“The role of officer-psychologists and deputy commanders of military units responsible for morale and psychological support is significant in preventing these phenomena and harmful practices from entering the army. Regular training sessions, professional development courses and seminars are held for them,” he said.
According to Torosyan, groups comprising representatives of structural subdivisions of the Defence Ministry’s central administration are also regularly formed and deployed to military units to carry out ongoing work with personnel.