The Ministry of Defence is clarifying the recent press publications, particularly on the article “The Citizen of the Russian Federation is Drafted” (“Fourth Power” N 867, 09.07.2009, author: Gohar Veziryan)Relations regarding the acquirement or cessation of RA citizenship, as well as those regarding the legal regime of double-citizenship, are carried out according to the “About the RA Citizenship” RA law passed in 1995.

The article 9 of the above mentioned law, among other bases, defines two primary bases for acquiring RA citizenship: the recognition of the citizenship and the birth. According to the requirements of the 1st point of the article 10 of the law, “RA citizenship is given to permanent residents of the Republic of Armenia who are former USSR citizens; those who have not acquired other country’s citizenship before the Constitution was practiced or have refused it in the period of one year since this law was passed.” According to this law, the parents of Vigen Vahram Harutiunyan have been considered RA citizens, and, accordingly, his father has received a RA citizen’s AA0408754 passport by the RA police Arabkir branch 01.06.1996, and his mother - RA citizen’s AA0408751 passport by the RA police Arabkir branch 01.06.1996. As a result of the amendments in the “About the RA Citizenship” RA law amended in March, 2007 the legal regime for the double-citizens was planned and in the article 13.1 of the law it was defined that “RA double-citizen is considered the person who, other than the RA citizenship, has also another state’s(country’s) citizenship. For the Republic of Armenia the RA double-citizen is recognized only as an RA citizen. The following law is also spread upon those RA citizens who, after the 1st of January, 1995, without ceasing their RA citizenship appropriately have received citizenship of another country, or those who have unilaterally rejected their RA citizenship. The RA double-citizen has all the rights of an RA citizen and bears all the duties and responsibilities of an RA citizen, except the cases defined by RA International Contracts and the Law.” According the requirements of the article 11 of the law, “the child, whose parents are RA citizens at the time of his birth, irrespective of the place of birth, acquires RA citizenship”. According to the article 1 of the law, “Giving up the RA citizenship or accepting other citizenship does not result in losing the RA citizenship.” The parents of V. Harutiunyan, in 2003, without ceasing their RA citizenship in accordance with the law, that is to say, as RA citizens violating the requirements of the “About the RA Citizenship” RA law, have received a Russian Federation citizen’s passport by the RF embassy in the RA, based on which Vigen harutiunyan also was given an RF citizen’s passport by the RF embassy in the RA in 2006. Based on this requirement of the law, in 2007 the “About Military Recruitment” RA law was amended and in the article 3.1 the recruitment of the RA citizens who are considered double-citizens was defined. According to the article mentioned, “the citizen of another country who has accepted RA citizenship is excepted from mandatory military service if, before accepting RA citizenship, has served in the armed forces of another country for not less than 12 months, or has completed an alternative military service in another country for at least 18 months, exclusive the states defined by the RA Government. The RA citizen, who has accepted another citizenship, is not exempted from mandatory military service, notwithstanding the fact of his serving or not serving in another country. The double-citizen is not exempted from military and training recruitments.” Taking into consideration the requirements of the above mentioned RA laws, as well as basing on the requirements of the article 46 of the RA Constitution, according to which “Each citizen, in accordance with the law, must take part in the RA defence”, Vigen Vahram Harutiunyan is a double-citizen, and as such, is considered an RA citizen and has all the rights of an RA citizen and bears all the duties and responsibilities of an RA citizen, included the duty of military service and the responsibility for avoiding it. Today, 28 draftees living in different regions of Armenia appear to be in a similar state.