Vazgen Sargsyan - Nagorno-Karabakh War and Later Years

Nagorno-Karabakh War and Later Years

Sargsyan's rise to the top started when, as a former Communist Youth league organiser, he joined the growing movement for the mainly-Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh to be transferred from Azerbaijani to Armenian jurisdiction. He was elected to the Armenian parliament in the 1990 elections, the first semi-free elections Armenia had held, where he became a member of the Internal Affairs and State Defence Committee. In 1990–1992 he stayed in Nagorno-Karabakh, commanding irregular troops that defended the peaceful population of Karabakh towns and villages from the Azerbaijani military attack that followed the declaration of independence of Karabakh from Azerbaijani rule.

From 1992–1993 he was defence minister of Armenia, while from 1993–1995 he was state minister in charge of defence. In 1995, during the restructuring of government ministries, he once again became defence minister. In these various capacities he laid the groundwork for building Armenia's army, a cause dear to his heart. He controlled the fledgling armed forces during the height of the fighting in Karabakh, in which Armenia's forces were heavily involved.