Vilen Gabrielyan says Shaki incident does not indicate systemic border control problem

The Shaki incident does not indicate a systemic problem with border control, but problems in the border area must be analysed and addressed to reduce the risk of similar incidents, Vilen Gabrielyan said.

The chairman of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Defence and Security was speaking to journalists on 5 November following a closed discussion on the incident.

“No, this incident does not indicate that there is a systemic problem concerning Armenia’s border. Nevertheless, we certainly have problems in the border area. Our colleagues in the relevant agencies acknowledge that we have problems. Our task is precisely to identify the problems revealed by this incident, analyse them and address them so that we can prevent similar incidents or manage the risks as effectively as possible,” Gabrielyan said.

The committee chairman did not rule out the possibility of similar incidents recurring. In his assessment, the border delimitation process between Armenia and Azerbaijan is also important for reducing risks.

“Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan has not been fully delimited, and I think our main effort should be directed towards resuming the delimitation process as soon as possible and bringing it to completion,” he said.

Gabrielyan stressed that border control was being carried out and that joint efforts were needed to resolve the existing problems.

According to him, the closed meeting focused exclusively on the Shaki incident, including the circumstances of the border crossing and the actions taken by state bodies after receiving information about it.

The defence and interior ministers, the National Security Service director and the Investigative Committee chairman attended the discussion.

On 1 October, Azerbaijani serviceman Nasimi Musayev unlawfully entered a house in Shaki, a settlement in the Sisian municipality, and opened fire after being discovered. An Armenian citizen born in 1987 was wounded. His two children also sought medical treatment for injuries: one had a fractured right wrist and the other had soft tissue bruising. On 2 October, the Investigative Committee announced that Musayev had been remanded in custody for two months.