12th Peacekeeping Brigade

The 12th Peacekeeping Battalion (Armenian: 12-րդ Խաղաղապահ բրիգադ Հայաստան) is a military unit of the Armed Forces of Armenia. Sometimes referred to as the Blue Berets due to its role (and its similarities to the Armenian Airborne Forces[1]), it solely specializes in peacekeeping in foreign countries as part of international initiatives. It is commanded by Major General Arthur Simonyan. In early 2016, Defence Minister Seyran Ohanyan said that he considers the brigade to be the "basis for the establishment of a professional army".[2]

A member of the brigade at Camp Victory in October 2008.

History

In July 2001, a memorandum on Armenian peacekeeping was signed at the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York, being the catalyst for the formation of a peacekeeping unit. Captain Artak Tonoyan was appointed the first commander of the battalion.[3] The battalion was subsequently reformed into a brigade. In February 2004, the first group of Armenian peacekeepers (consisting of 34 soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Artem Avdalyan) were deployed to Kosovo for six months.[4][5]

In March 2008, the brigade was relocated to the former base of the Capital Regiment.[6] In 2016, its personnel carried the flags of the United States, Germany, Italy, Poland and Greece while taking part in the Independence Day parade on Republic Square.[7] In November 2017, the unit opened a peacekeeping training center (known as the Zar Peacekeeping Area) in Zar.[8][9][10] A women’s platoon was established that same year as part of the cooperation program between the unit and the United Nations Population Fund.[11]

Participation in the Armenian Revolution

In April 2018, it was reported that members of the brigade marched alongside anti-government forces in the 2018 Armenian revolution. The Armenian Defense Ministry condemned what it described as an illegal action, saying that "The harshest legal measures will be taken against the soldiers".[12]

Activities
A platoon sergeant with the Kansas National Guard, evaluateing an Armenian soldier with the Engineering Company of the brigade.

The first peacekeeping mission of the unit was in Kosovo, carried out as part of the Greek contingent in the town of Ferizaj. It left Kosovo in 2011 only to return in 2012,[13] with its new garrison being stationed at a base of United States Army Europe.[14]

In January 2005, having received the consent of the National Assembly of Armenia, a group of 45 peacekeepers went to Iraq together with a Polish Army unit. In January 2010, forty peacekeepers went to Afghanistan in a mission carried out jointly with the Bundeswehr, serving in Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif, and formerly in Kunduz. During the mission, an Armenian chapel was opened. Since December 2014, the brigade sent a platoon in Lebanon as part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.

The brigade became the base of the Armenian contingent in Syria, a task force consisting of 83 medics, demining experts, force protection and other military personnel. This was the first independent foreign deployment of the Armenian military.[15][16]

See also

References
  1. "The Straw That Broke Sargsyan's Back?". Medium. April 30, 2018.
  2. https://artsakhpress.am/eng/news/38155/
  3. Armenian peacekeepers professionally fulfill their tasks at missions abroad
  4. "Հայաստանի ԶՈՒ խաղաղապահ բրիգադ. Միջազգային գործունեության մասնակցության աշխարհագրություն ընդլայնվում է". news.am.
  5. "Arminfo: Командир миротворческой бригады: Обострение ситуации в Косово не отразилось на деятельности армянского миротворческого контингента в этой стране". arminfo.info.
  6. https://newsarmenia.am/news/politics/arm1-20080322-41846775/
  7. "Armenia Showcases New Missiles in Independence Day Parade | Armenian News By MassisPost". Armenian News By MassisPost. 2016-09-21. Retrieved 2017-04-29.
  8. "Armenia, U.S. Celebrate Reopening of Zar Peacekeeping Training Area". U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.
  9. "Armenia, U.S. Celebrate Reopening of Zar Peacekeeping Training Area". November 2, 2017.
  10. "Հայ սանհրահանգիչները վերապատրաստվում են ամերիկացի գործընկերների կողմից". Հայաստանում ԱՄՆ դեսպանատունը. August 28, 2015.
  11. http://www.hayzinvor.am/en/69333.html?fdx_switcher=true
  12. "Unarmed soldiers join anti-government protests in Armenia". Reuters. 23 April 2018.
  13. https://www.azatutyun.am/amp/24478025.html
  14. https://regionalpost.org/en/articles/ambassador-of-the-armenian-forces.html
  15. Armenia to send military police peacekeepers to Syria
  16. "Peacekeeping brigade chief: Every peacekeeper is Armenian ambassador abroad". news.am.
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