Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Onik Gasparyan today said that the forces under his command did everything possible to emerge victorious in the recent war in Artsakh and that he takes full responsibility for its outcome.

Colonel Major General Gasparyan, in a statement released today, said that once he was appointed to the position in June of this year he presented an analysis of the military-political situation in the region to the government, and that based on the analysis, he proposed increasing military security in Armenia.

Gasparyan says he told the political leadership that the opponent is not only Azerbaijan, but Turkey as well and that Armenia cannot effectively withstand the combined military potential of both.

He says he told the government that it is necessary to direct al political and diplomatic efforts to avoid or at least delay the war.

Gasparyan says the proposal was accepted by the Security Council and PM Pashinyan.

He says that he advised the government that if war was inevitable, all must be done to avoid a protracted war given limited resources. Gasparyan says he favored a plan to inflict heavy losses on the enemy as soon as possible.

Gasparyan says that many proposals were discussed and approved that should have significantly increased Armenian combat potential.

He said that when Azerbaijan, with superior forces, attacked along all fronts in Artsakh, the Artsakh Defense Army repelled all enemy advances, inflicting heavy casualties.

“Sadly, our forces also suffered heavy losses,” Gasparyan writes.

He says that by the fourth day of the war it was clear that Armenian resources were near depletion and that he warned the Security Council that if the fighting didn’t cease, Armenia would face a weaker position for future negotiations.

Gasparyan says he constantly informed PM Pashinyan and the Security Council about the situation of the ground.

He says that Turkey and Azerbaijan rejected all calls for a ceasefire and that Armenian troops were forced to continue fighting, attempting to inflict heavy losses on the enemy and force him to sit at the negotiating table.

Gasparyan writes that the ceasefire agreement was adopted after a sober assessment of the situation on the ground, describing it as a choice between a “very bad situation and a tragedy”.

“That day was the worst day of my life, a personal tragedy for me. We must unite, recover quickly, and prepare for the continuation of the struggle. As Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces - Commander-in-Chief, I am responsible for all the successes and failures of the Armed Forces. Before their relatives, I bow my head in memory of all our martyrs,” Gasparyan writes.