YEREVAN, JANUARY 28, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan on January 28 visited the Yerablur Military Pantheon on the Army Day to pay tribute to the memory of Armenian heroes who gave their lives for the independence of Homeland, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The President was accompanied by President of Artsakh Bako Sahakyan, members of the National Security Council, as well as the leadership of the Defense Ministry and the Armed Forces.

Before that President Sargsyan awarded the high state awards, posthumously awarded to soldiers, to their family members. The awarding ceremony was attended also by the cadets attached to these families, the cadets of the Defense Ministry’s Military Institute after Vazgen Sargsyan, Military-Aviation Institute after Armenak Khanperyants and students of the Monte Melkonyan Military-Training College.

The Armenian President also addressed his congratulatory message on the Army Day.

“Dear compatriots,

I warmly congratulate you on the Army Day.

The Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia are the shield of country and our pride. Our Army, being the reliable guarantor of our people’s security, is also a very important component of regional stability.

We know what it means the absence of statehood and regular army and we also know how much we have paid for that. The existence of own army for the people who faced hardships has a unique perception.

Our Army is a nationwide army which since its establishment feels the love and respect of the people, enjoys the people’s trust and unconditional support. I am confident that in the future as well the Republic of Armenia and the people will cherish their firstborn.

Dear compatriots,

We are the happy generation which, after a long pause, saw the revival of the Armenian Armed Force, saw its strengthening and development. We are the generation which not only saw, but participated in and recreated that Army. Due to historical circumstances, but in a more accurate formulation, due to the war unleashed by Azerbaijan, the Artsakh liberation war, we started building our independent statehood from self-defense. The Army became the core of our newly-independent Armenian statehood.

Our volunteers, later already the soldiers and officers passed a glorious military path putting the foundations of today’s Army. This festive Day is a chance to once again thank our soldiers and officers for carrying out their mission with dedication.

It’s not a secret that today we have a qualitatively different Army equipped with the latest weapons and technologies. But we continue and will continue consistently increasing the combat readiness of our Army. For this purpose a 7-year Army modernization program has been adopted which we will implement in accordance with the timetable. I personally will spare no efforts for our Army to become more modern and more powerful.

Dear compatriots,

Today we are in Yerablur. On this sacred day it’s our duty to bow down to the memory of heroes who gave us life and freedom at the expense of their lives. We share the grief of families and relatives of the fallen soldiers. We call on the generations to always keep their memory alive, the meaning of this important holiday of the Armenian people. Eternal glory to our heroes.

Live long the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia!”