Armenian Ministry of Defense explains cuts in military spending

Although military spending in Armenia will be reduced to 2024 levels next year, the three-year budget for the Armenian Armed Forces will be twice as large as the 2018-2020 budget. Minister Suren Papikyan attributed the cuts in spending to the schedule of military contract payments.

The reduction in the Armenian army's budget in 2026 is explained by the fact that Armenia's planned defense spending for next year was partially transferred to the current year, Defense Minister Suren Papikyan told Armenian media, responding to the nationalist opposition's claims about cuts in military spending. However, he did not explain why Yerevan would spend so much on rearming its army given the de facto peace with Baku.

The scandal erupted over an infographic previously published by the Armenian Ministry of Defense, which showed Yerevan's military spending statistics, according to which following Azerbaijan's victory in the Karabakh War, Armenia consistently increased its military budget during 5 years, and will only reduce it to the 2024 level next year.