12th Peacekeeping Brigade (Armenia)

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12th Peacekeeping Brigade
12-րդ Խաղաղապահ բրիգադ
Armenian soliders, Iraq-1.jpg
A member of the brigade at Camp Victory in October 2008.
ActiveJuly 2001–present
Country Armenia
BranchArmed Forces of Armenia
RolePeackeeping duties
Part of Ministry of Defense of Armenia
Garrison/HQYerevan
Nickname(s)Blue Berets
EngagementsPeacekeeping roles in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Lebanon
Commanders
Brigade CommanderMajor General Artak Tonoyan

The 12th Peacekeeping Brigade (Armenian: 12-րդ Խաղաղապահ բրիգադ) 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 Artak Tonoyan. 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]

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 antigovernmental 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]

Deployments

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

The Armenian army has collaborated in several international missions with the West. The first peacekeeping mission of the unit was in Kosovo, carried out as part of the Greek contingent in the town of Ferizaj. On February 12, 2004, Armenia deployed a platoon-sized unit (three squads) to Kosovo as a part of the mission. It was headquartered in Camp "REGAS FEREOS" as a part of the Multi-National Task Force East and is tasked with maintaining vehicle check points, providing security for the base but also serves as a quick reaction force and crowd and riot control.[13] In 2008, the KFOR unit was expanded, adding a second platoon plus company staff (bringing Armenia's contingent to about 85 personnel).[14] It left Kosovo in 2011 only to return in 2012,[15] with its new garrison being stationed at a base of United States Army Europe.[16]

Other deployments

Iraq

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. The contingent consisted of sappers, engineers and doctors as part of the Multi-National Force – Iraq. On November 10, 2006, Senior Lieutenant Georgy Nalbandyan was injured in a mine explosion in Iraq but survived after being transported for surgery to a hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, near Ramstein Air Base.[17] On October 6, 2008, due to improving security conditions, the contingent's tour of duty came to an end.[18]

Afghanistan

In July 2009, the Defense Minister of Armenia, Seyran Ohanyan, announced that Armenia would send a force from the brigade to participate with the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in the War in Afghanistan by the end of the year. He did not mention how large the force would be but did note that it probably would include munitions experts and communications officers. A MOD spokesmen also stated that the force would include medical specialists and translators as well. Ohanyan added that Armenian officers who served in the Soviet military during the Soviet–Afghan War also expressed the desire to return there as members of the new force.[19] In November 2009, a NATO official affirmed that an Armenian contingent numbering 30 troops will join the ISAF sometime in early 2010.[20] That number was revised to 40 in early December, when the Armenian parliament overwhelmingly voted in approval of the contingent's deployment. The servicemen arrived in Afghanistan in February 2010, where they carried out a mission jointly with the German Bundeswehr, being tasked to defend the regional airport in Kunduz.[21] They also served in Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif. There are currently 126 servicemen in Afghanistan.[22]

Lebanon

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.

Syria

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.[23][24]

Armenian peacekeepers in Iraq.

Kazakhstan

See also: 2022 Kazakh protests

100 peacekeepers were deployed to Kazakhstan in the aftermath of the 2022 Kazakh protests, serving to protect water sources and a bread factory in Almaty.[25]

Commanders

  • Major General Arthur Simonyan (–12 October 2017)
  • Colonel Vaghinak Sargsyan (12 October 2017 – 20 June 2018)[26]
  • Major General Artak Tonoyan (since 20 June 2018)[27]

During the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, it was reported by the Azerbaijani Army that Tonoyan was killed in action, although these reported were later deemed as false.[28]

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Straw That Broke Sargsyan's Back?". Medium. April 30, 2018.
  2. ^ "Seyran Ohanyan considers peacekeeping brigade as basis for establishment of professional army".
  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. Archived from the original on 2022-01-10. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
  6. ^ "Армянская миротворческая бригада будет размещена на территории Столичного полка".
  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. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  10. ^ "Հայ սանհրահանգիչները վերապատրաստվում են ամերիկացի գործընկերների կողմից". Հայաստանում ԱՄՆ դեսպանատունը. August 28, 2015.
  11. ^ "Women Peacekeepers".
  12. ^ "Unarmed soldiers join anti-government protests in Armenia". Reuters. 23 April 2018.
  13. ^ Kosovo Force. KFOR Contingent: Armenia. KFOR. Last updated January 24, 2006. Accessed February 9, 2007.
  14. ^ NATO’s relations with Armenia. NATO. Retrieved November 29, 2009.
  15. ^ "Armenian Troops Withdrawn from Kosovo".
  16. ^ "Ambassador of the Armenian forces".
  17. ^ "Armenian peacekeeper to undergo two more surgeries Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine." Public Radio of Armenia. November 20, 2006. Retrieved February 1, 2007.
  18. ^ Glassey, Eric. "Armenians Complete Successful Mission." Multinational Force in Iraq. October 7, 2008. Accessed September 6, 2009.
  19. ^ "Armenia to send forces to Afghanistan this year Archived 2009-08-01 at the Wayback Machine." Armenian Reporter. July 24, 2009. Retrieved September 6, 2009.
  20. ^ "Armenia To Send Troops To Afghanistan." RFE/RL. November 09, 2009. Retrieved November 29, 2009.
  21. ^ "Armenian Parliament Endorses Troop Deployment To Afghanistan." RFE/RL. December 8, 2009. Retrieved January 3, 2010.
  22. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). The Military Balance 2012. London: Routledge, 2012, pp. 90–91.
  23. ^ Armenia to send military police peacekeepers to Syria
  24. ^ "Peacekeeping brigade chief: Every peacekeeper is Armenian ambassador abroad". news.am.
  25. ^ "Ալմաթիում հայ խաղաղապահների հիմնական խնդիրներից էր կանխել ջրատարի թունավորումը". «Ազատ Եվրոպա/Ազատություն» ռադիոկայան (in Armenian). Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  26. ^ "Peacekeeping brigade to have new commander".
  27. ^ "Артак Тоноян назначен командиром миротворческой бригады Минобороны Армении".
  28. ^ https://defence.az/en/news/147017/armenian-general-eliminated-in-karabakh%C2%A0?__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=046f75b15fc2af1f8703fdff88841034402fe9e1-1613795172-0-AXbsbJxrwQOFHtpWuL4GSXc8o60WsKzrICNnMNZ_w52gLe0MRYSR3riS-U99PCM8CYOJROmbGg1Xy-GhhhMmZsvulWZJrGMuILBcy9l8AVJ3TcjKTFkAUAMmopefhoaSS0OPJ48DfLC6CX2k9lPotDgkFeO1v03HKvcDdUB8fWAorTvREhZ7vYMgLS7uT7DXwZHhrgr2GIxPBXBdSjpzREkU_OvSCBWq98gXj6rTHKDJ1BbDPto90lPTGd6hL5HinnLVIQaKmwC1IXUcgEyHL4Ib4Be_InXsw0szeOaQgdZhdgWKzow5eOX0fnr5w_29MuHFHfsk6_osO2cwROJ3LWDEJ3Upi7Is686iYI7RdmeBj-ev1DHdUaZwdbfs25_ujSXSNVqi8hLEtCJDqVP_elhTqe8kMahXEwzIz3mewjMi619LbHA2qHRbXS6j73Ij1w
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