In what appears to be yet another Armenian government security lapse, a private telephone conversation between Nikol Pashinyan and National Security Service Chief Artur Vanetsyan regarding the arrest of former Armenian defense minister Yuri Khachaturov, has surfaced on the internet.

This past July,  Armenia’s Special Investigative Service (SIS) charged Yuri Khachaturov with “usurping state power” during the March 1-2, 2008 public protests in Yerevan that claimed the lives of ten people.

Khachaturov was Armenia's Deputy Minister of Defense at the time of widespread demonstrations in the Armenian capital following the February 2008 presidential election that resulted in Serzh Sargsyan replacing the outgoing Robert Kocharyan.

Two weeks after charges were filed, a Yerevan court decided to release Khachaturov from pre-trial detention after paying AMD 5 million ($10,400) bail.

Khachaturov was later dismissed from his post as CSTO Secretary General.

In September, a phone conversation between the heads of Armenia’s  National Security Service and the Special Investigative Service  appeared on the internet.

In the phone conversation, National Security Service (NSS) Chief Artur Vanetsyan and Special Investigative Service (SIS) Chief Sasun Khachatryan are heard discussing the detention of former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and the ongoing investigation of the events of March 1, 2008.