Summer conscription in Armenia to take place despite coronavirus pandemic

The Armenian military has decided not to cancel the summer conscription despite the coronavirus epidemic.

As a security measure, the Ministry of Defense has developed rules that will be strictly adhered to during the draft. The press secretary of the Ministry of Defense Shushan Stepanyan said this on her Facebook page.

The draft will be held from July 1 to August 30. Starting May 1, preparations for the draft will begin.

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How will the draft be carried out

Conscripts and all military personnel of military registration and enlistment offices will be given personal protective equipment against the virus: masks, gloves and rubbing alcohol.

Draftees will be called up to the military enlistment offices in small groups to avoid crowds. In addition, throughout the day, buildings will be periodically disinfected.

This year, the parents of future soldiers will be able to follow the draw process – where their sons will go to serve – not inside the building of the central assembly point, as it was before, but online. In the process of drawing lots, each conscript himself draws a “lottery” with the number of the part in which he will serve.

Moreover, this time the draw will also be held outside the assembly center, in the open air.

Contacts between draftees and personnel of the Armed Forces will also be limited.

Recruits will be quarantined for two weeks – separate from the rest of the military, and will be tested if necessary.

Coronavirus in the Armenian army

Six military men who had been diagnosed with coronavirus were previously reported. All of them served in the same military unit and away from combat positions.

The story began with the fact that a family member of one of the servicemen was diagnosed with a coronavirus, then he himself. The Minister of Defense then reported that all colleagues of the infected were pre-isolated, and this significantly reduced the risks of further spread of the virus.

The latest information about coronavirus infected in the Armenian army was April 13. Then the head of the military medical department of the Armed Forces Sahak Ohanyan reported that six soldiers who had been diagnosed with coronavirus recovered and returned to service.