Armenian parliament speaker sends 2020 war probe report to archives

Armenian National Assembly Speaker Alen Simonyan has decided to send the report of the ad hoc parliamentary commission investigating the circumstances of the 2020 war to the parliament archives, his spokesperson Movses Harutyunyan told Panorama.am on Monday.

According to Harutyunyan, due to discrepancies in procedural deadlines, the report could not be included in the parliament’s plenary agenda. Following consultations with relevant legal stakeholders, it was decided to archive the document.

“MPs who hold the necessary security clearance can access and review the report,” Harutyunyan said.

He added that the National Assembly’s Rules of Procedure sets specific deadlines, which have already expired in this case.

When asked whether the committee chaired by Andranik Kocharyan had submitted the report late, Harutyunyan declined to comment, saying only that “the Rules of Procedure clearly outline the timelines”.

The parliamentary commission was established in February 2022 at the initiative of MPs from the ruling Civil Contract faction to investigate the circumstances surrounding the war that began on September 27, 2020. Under parliamentary rules, such committees operate for up to six months, with a single six-month extension permitted by the National Assembly.