page_title: Vazgen Sargsyan
section_title: Minister of Defence and president change
hierarchical_section_title: Vazgen Sargsyan / Minister of Defence and president change
context_page_description: Vazgen Sargsyan was an Armenian military commander and politician. He was the first Defence Minister of Armenia from 1991 to 1992 and then from 1995 to 1999. He served as Armenia's Prime Minister from 11 June 1999 until his assassination on 27 October of that year. He rose to prominence during the mass movement for the unification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia in the late 1980s and led Armenian volunteer groups during the early clashes with Azerbaijani forces. Appointed Defence Minister by President Levon Ter-Petrosyan soon after Armenia's independence from the Soviet Union in late 1991, Sargsyan became the most prominent commander of Armenian forces during the Nagorno-Karabakh War. In different positions, he regulated the military operations in the war area until 1994, when a ceasefire was reached ending the war with the de facto unification of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic with Armenia.
  In the post-war years, Sargsyan tightened his grip on the Armed Forces, establishing himself as a virtual strongman.
context_section_description: Sargsyan was appointed Minister of Defence by Ter-Petrosyan on 26 July 1995, during the restructuring of government ministries. He remained in that position for almost four years. The Armenian army was highly regarded by experts with Armenia being described as the only former Soviet state that "managed to build a combat-capable army from scratch" and was "comparable in efficiency to the Soviet Army". According to Thomas de Waal, the army was "the most powerful institution" in Armenia under him. Sargsyan is credited with substantially professionalizing the Armenian army.
  Sargsyan showed strong confidence in the army and stated in 1997 that its strength has doubled in the past two years. In the same year, in response to Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev's statements that Azerbaijan was "ready to solve the Karabakh problem by force," Sargsyan replied, "Let him do it. We are ready." Sargsyan's term as Minister of Defence was marked by cooperation with Russia and Greece. Sargsyan had "close connections" with the Russian military elite, especially Defense Minister Pavel Grachev. According to the Jamestown Foundation, he pursued a military diplomacy with Greece, Cyprus, Syria, Iran and Bulgaria for a pro-Russian alliance.
caption: The Armenian Armed Forces headed by Vazgen Sargsyan significantly influenced the outcome of four elections from 1995 to 1999.[38]
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