Armenia proposes tougher punishments for military service evasion

The Armenian government has announced a significant crackdown on individuals evading military service and participation in training camps, proposing tougher penalties for such offenses.

The decision, which aims to address the growing number of criminal cases related to military service evasion, was presented by Deputy Justice Minister Gevorg Kocharyan at the parliamentary committee on state-legal issues, Caliber.Az reports citing Armenian media.

The government has become increasingly concerned over the rising instances of evasion, with 1,499 cases recorded in 2023 and 1,779 cases in 2024. As part of the proposed amendments to the Criminal Code, the government is seeking to increase the term of imprisonment for evasion from 2-5 years to 3-6 years. Additionally, the fine for evading service will be raised significantly, from 20 times the monthly income to between 15 and 35 times the average monthly wage. Moreover, those sentenced to up to two years of imprisonment will now face a revised term of 1-3 years.

The severity of penalties for these offenses will also be heightened. Evasion of military service will be reclassified from a medium-severity offense to a grave one, while evasion of fees will be upgraded from a low-severity offense to a medium-severity offense.

This move follows the Armenian government’s approval of a draft proposal on April 3, which seeks to tighten punishments for military service evasion and non-compliance with training camp obligations. The government aims to strengthen military readiness and address what it perceives as a growing problem of evasion, which it considers detrimental to national security.

By Vafa Guliyeva