Serzh Sarkisyan
Encyclopedia
Serzh Azati Sargsyan is the third President of Armenia
. He won the February 2008 presidential election
with the backing of the conservative Republican Party of Armenia
, a party in which he serves as chairman, and took office in April 2008.
, Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
, Azerbaijan SSR
. He was admitted to Yerevan State University
in 1971, served in the Soviet Armed Forces
during 1971-72, and graduated from the Philological Department of Yerevan State University in 1979. In 1983, he married his wife, Rita
. They have two daughters, Anush and Satenik, and one granddaughter, Mariam. He is the chairman of the Chess Federation of Armenia. In addition to his native Armenian, he is fluent in Russian, English and Azeri, but he has not spoken Azeri for 20 years. He is of no relation to the current Prime Minister of Armenia
, Tigran Sargsyan
.
, where he worked as a metal turner until 1979 when he became head of the Stepanakert City Communist Party Youth Association Committee. Then served as second secretary, first secretary, the Stepanakert City Committee Propaganda Division Head, the Nagorno-Karabakh Regional Committee Communist Organizations' Unit Instructor, and finally as the assistant to Genrikh Poghosyan, the First Secretary of the Nagorno-Karabakh Regional Committee.
As tensions rose over Nagorno-Karabakh between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, Sargsyan became chairman of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Self-Defense Forces Committee and was subsequently elected to the Supreme Council of Armenia
in 1990. He organized several battles in the Nagorno-Karabakh War
and is considered to be one of the founders of Nagorno-Karabakh's and Armenia's armed forces. He became the Armenian defense minister in 1993, head of Armenian state security department in 1995 and minister of national security in 1996. In 1999, he became Robert Kocharyan's chief of staff, then secretary of the national security council, defense minister, and prime minister in 2007.
. Full provisional results showed him winning about 53% of the vote, a first round majority, well ahead of second place candidate Levon Ter-Petrossian
. Ter-Petrossian's supporters, disputing the official results, held large protests
in Yerevan for over a week following the election, until they were violently broken up by police on March 1; ten people were killed, and a state of emergency was imposed for 20 days, ending on March 20, 2008. He is of no relation to the Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sargsyan
.
, who had been the Chairman of the Central Bank and is not a member of a political party, as Prime Minister. Vazgen Manukyan
, a former member of the Karabakh Committee
and a prominent oppositionist, stated that he is optimistic and "will do everything to help this government become successful". On April 18, Sargsyan launched an unusually blistering attack on the Armenian customs, saying that "corruption within its ranks is 'thriving' and hampering the countrys economic development." He later authorized an opposition to take place in Yerevan and pledged to comply with the Council of Europe
's demands for an end to the government's crackdown on the opposition.
. On October 10, 2009, however, by signing the Turkish-Armenian protocols on the establishment of diplomatic relations, he most notably accepted a precondition in regards to the veracity of the Armenian genocide, in that he accepted the proposal of studying the issue through a commission. Moreover, with his acceptance of the current Turkish-Armenian border, he neglected Armenian demands for Western Armenia
, which are supported by the Treaty of Sèvres
. He also stated that "Armenia's possible recognition of Kosovo
's independence will not strain the Armenian-Russian relations" but also noted that the "Kosovo recognition issue needs serious discussion ... Armenia has always been an adherent to the right of nations to self-determination and in this aspect we welcome Kosovo's independence."
Sargsyan made his first address in front of the 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly
in New York on September 25, 2008. In his address he referenced the 2008 South Ossetia conflict
and emphasized the need for the United Nations to help bring peaceful resolution to armed conflicts around the world, including the one in Nagorno-Karabakh
. He also mentioned how Azerbaijan's military buildup along with increasing war rhetoric and threats risked causing renewed problems in the South Caucasus
.
at their helm. In a concession to protesters, Sargsyan said on 20 April 2011 that the government would recommit to a thorough investigation of the post-election violence
of three years prior.
of his given name are Serge
and Serj, of the surname Sarkissian, Sarkisyan, Sargsyan, Sarkissyan, the transliteration
is Serž Azati Sargsyan (see Romanization of Armenian
).
|-
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
. He won the February 2008 presidential election
Armenian presidential election, 2008
A presidential election was held in Armenia on 19 February 2008. Prime Minister of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan won the election in the first round according to official results, but this is disputed by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian, who officially placed second.The candidacy of Sargsyan was...
with the backing of the conservative Republican Party of Armenia
Republican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia is a national conservative political party in Armenia. It was the first political party in independent Armenia to be founded and registered . It is the largest party of the centre-right in Armenia, and claims to have 140,000 members...
, a party in which he serves as chairman, and took office in April 2008.
Personal life
Serzh Sargsyan was born on June 30, 1954 in StepanakertStepanakert
Stepanakert is the largest city and capital of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, a de facto independent republic, though is internationally recognized as a part of Azerbaijan...
, Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast was an autonomous oblast within the borders of the Azerbaijan SSR, mostly inhabited by ethnic Armenians and created on July 7, 1923. According to Karl R. DeRouen it was created as an enclave so that a narrow strip of land would separate it from Armenia proper....
, Azerbaijan SSR
Azerbaijan SSR
The Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Azerbaijan SSR for short, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union....
. He was admitted to Yerevan State University
Yerevan State University
Yerevan State University is a university in Yerevan, Armenia. Founded on May 16 1919, it is the largest university in the country with 110 departments. Of its 3,150 employees, 1,190 comprise the teaching staff which includes 25 academicians, 130 professors, 700 docents , and 360 assistant lecturers...
in 1971, served in the Soviet Armed Forces
Soviet Armed Forces
The Soviet Armed Forces, also called the Armed Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Armed Forces of the Soviet Union refers to the armed forces of the Russian SFSR , and Soviet Union from their beginnings in the...
during 1971-72, and graduated from the Philological Department of Yerevan State University in 1979. In 1983, he married his wife, Rita
Rita Sargsyan
Rita Sargsyan is the wife of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and is the First Lady of Armenia. She was born to a military family and is a music teacher by profession.-References:...
. They have two daughters, Anush and Satenik, and one granddaughter, Mariam. He is the chairman of the Chess Federation of Armenia. In addition to his native Armenian, he is fluent in Russian, English and Azeri, but he has not spoken Azeri for 20 years. He is of no relation to the current Prime Minister of Armenia
Prime Minister of Armenia
The Prime Minister of Armenia is the most senior minister within the Armenian government, and is required by the constitution to "oversee the Government's regular activities and coordinate the work of the Ministers." The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of Armenia, but can be removed by...
, Tigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan has been the Prime Minister of Armenia since 9 April 2008.Tigran Sargsyan was born in Kirovakan, Armenian SSR . From 1980 to 1983, he attended Leningrad's Voznesenski Financial and Economic Institute. From 1983 to 1987 his postgraduate education ended in obtaining PhD degree...
.
Early career
Sargsyan's career began in 1975 at the Electrical Devices Factory in YerevanYerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, where he worked as a metal turner until 1979 when he became head of the Stepanakert City Communist Party Youth Association Committee. Then served as second secretary, first secretary, the Stepanakert City Committee Propaganda Division Head, the Nagorno-Karabakh Regional Committee Communist Organizations' Unit Instructor, and finally as the assistant to Genrikh Poghosyan, the First Secretary of the Nagorno-Karabakh Regional Committee.
As tensions rose over Nagorno-Karabakh between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, Sargsyan became chairman of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Self-Defense Forces Committee and was subsequently elected to the Supreme Council of Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
in 1990. He organized several battles in the Nagorno-Karabakh War
Nagorno-Karabakh War
The Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan...
and is considered to be one of the founders of Nagorno-Karabakh's and Armenia's armed forces. He became the Armenian defense minister in 1993, head of Armenian state security department in 1995 and minister of national security in 1996. In 1999, he became Robert Kocharyan's chief of staff, then secretary of the national security council, defense minister, and prime minister in 2007.
2008 presidential election
Sargsyan, with President Kocharyan's backing, was viewed as the strongest contender for the post of the President of Armenia in the February 2008 presidential electionArmenian presidential election, 2008
A presidential election was held in Armenia on 19 February 2008. Prime Minister of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan won the election in the first round according to official results, but this is disputed by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian, who officially placed second.The candidacy of Sargsyan was...
. Full provisional results showed him winning about 53% of the vote, a first round majority, well ahead of second place candidate Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian , sometimes transliterated Levon Ter-Petrosyan or Ter-Petrosian , was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998...
. Ter-Petrossian's supporters, disputing the official results, held large protests
2008 Armenian presidential election protests
The 2008 Armenian presidential election protests were a series of mass protests held in Armenia in the wake of the Armenian presidential election of 19 February 2008...
in Yerevan for over a week following the election, until they were violently broken up by police on March 1; ten people were killed, and a state of emergency was imposed for 20 days, ending on March 20, 2008. He is of no relation to the Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan has been the Prime Minister of Armenia since 9 April 2008.Tigran Sargsyan was born in Kirovakan, Armenian SSR . From 1980 to 1983, he attended Leningrad's Voznesenski Financial and Economic Institute. From 1983 to 1987 his postgraduate education ended in obtaining PhD degree...
.
Presidency
Serzh Sargsyan was sworn in as President inside the Yerevan Opera House on April 9. Referring to the "painful events" that followed the election, he "urge[d] everybody to look forward, together, to seek and find the way for reconciliation, development, and future of Armenia." He appointed Tigran SargsyanTigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan has been the Prime Minister of Armenia since 9 April 2008.Tigran Sargsyan was born in Kirovakan, Armenian SSR . From 1980 to 1983, he attended Leningrad's Voznesenski Financial and Economic Institute. From 1983 to 1987 his postgraduate education ended in obtaining PhD degree...
, who had been the Chairman of the Central Bank and is not a member of a political party, as Prime Minister. Vazgen Manukyan
Vazgen Manukyan
Vazgen Manukyan was Prime Minister of Armenia from 1990 to 1991. From 1992 to 1993 Manukyan was acting Minister of Defense....
, a former member of the Karabakh Committee
Karabakh Committee
Karabakh Committee was a group of Armenian intellectuals recognized by many Armenians as their de facto leaders in the late 1980s. The Committee was formed in 1988 with the stated objective of the reunification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia...
and a prominent oppositionist, stated that he is optimistic and "will do everything to help this government become successful". On April 18, Sargsyan launched an unusually blistering attack on the Armenian customs, saying that "corruption within its ranks is 'thriving' and hampering the countrys economic development." He later authorized an opposition to take place in Yerevan and pledged to comply with the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
's demands for an end to the government's crackdown on the opposition.
Foreign policy
Sargsyan initially stated that he will continue Armenia's policy towards Turkey, to normalize relations without any preconditions while continuing to strive for international recognition of the 1915 Armenian GenocideArmenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
. On October 10, 2009, however, by signing the Turkish-Armenian protocols on the establishment of diplomatic relations, he most notably accepted a precondition in regards to the veracity of the Armenian genocide, in that he accepted the proposal of studying the issue through a commission. Moreover, with his acceptance of the current Turkish-Armenian border, he neglected Armenian demands for Western Armenia
Western Armenia
Western Armenia is a term, primarily used by Armenians, to refer to Armenian-inhabited areas of the Armenian Highland that were part of the Ottoman Empire and now are part of the Republic of Turkey....
, which are supported by the Treaty of Sèvres
Treaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres was the peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed with Germany before this treaty to annul the German concessions including the economic rights and enterprises. Also, France, Great Britain and Italy...
. He also stated that "Armenia's possible recognition of Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
's independence will not strain the Armenian-Russian relations" but also noted that the "Kosovo recognition issue needs serious discussion ... Armenia has always been an adherent to the right of nations to self-determination and in this aspect we welcome Kosovo's independence."
Sargsyan made his first address in front of the 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly
For two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
in New York on September 25, 2008. In his address he referenced the 2008 South Ossetia conflict
2008 South Ossetia war
The 2008 South Ossetia War or Russo-Georgian War was an armed conflict in August 2008 between Georgia on one side, and Russia and separatist governments of South Ossetia and Abkhazia on the other....
and emphasized the need for the United Nations to help bring peaceful resolution to armed conflicts around the world, including the one in Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...
. He also mentioned how Azerbaijan's military buildup along with increasing war rhetoric and threats risked causing renewed problems in the South Caucasus
South Caucasus
The South Caucasus is a geopolitical region located on the border of Eastern Europe and Southwest Asia also referred to as Transcaucasia, or The Trans-Caucasus...
.
Protests
Major protests against Sargsyan's regime began in 2011, with the president's 2008 rival Levon Ter-PetrossianLevon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian , sometimes transliterated Levon Ter-Petrosyan or Ter-Petrosian , was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998...
at their helm. In a concession to protesters, Sargsyan said on 20 April 2011 that the government would recommit to a thorough investigation of the post-election violence
2008 Armenian presidential election protests
The 2008 Armenian presidential election protests were a series of mass protests held in Armenia in the wake of the Armenian presidential election of 19 February 2008...
of three years prior.
Honors
Serzh Sargsyan has thus far been conferred the following honors:- Order of first Degree "Martakan Khach" ("Combat Cross")
- Hero of Artsakh
- Knight of "Voske Artsiv" (Golden Eagle) order
- Order of "Tigran Mets"
- The First Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the WiseOrder of Prince Yaroslav the WiseThe Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise is an award of Ukraine. It is awarded for distinguished services to the state and people of the Ukrainian nation. The Order was instituted on August 23, 1995 by the Ukrainian President, Leonid Kuchma....
(UkraineUkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, 2011)
Other details
Other transcriptionsTranscription (linguistics)
Transcription in the linguistic sense is the systematic representation of language in written form. The source can either be utterances or preexisting text in another writing system, although some linguists only consider the former as transcription.Transcription should not be confused with...
of his given name are Serge
Serge (first name)
Serge is a male given name, particularly common in France, Belgium; as Sérgio in Portugal and Brazil; and as Sergio in Italy, Spain and Spanish-speaking Latin America. The less common female version is Sergine...
and Serj, of the surname Sarkissian, Sarkisyan, Sargsyan, Sarkissyan, the transliteration
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
is Serž Azati Sargsyan (see Romanization of Armenian
Romanization of Armenian
- Hübschmann-Meillet :In linguistic literature on Classical Armenian, the commonly used transliteration is that of Hübschmann-Meillet .It uses a dot above mark to express the aspirates, t῾, ch῾, č῾, p῾, k῾...
).
External links
|-