1. Onik Viktori Gasparyan is an Armenian Colonel-General who served as the Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces from 8 June 2020 until his dismissal on 10 March 2021.
12 Facts About Onik Gasparyan
1. 2.
Onik Gasparyan completed his service in the Soviet Armed Forces from 1988 to 1990.
3.
Onik Gasparyan was the Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander of 4th Army Corps from 2007 and 2008.
4.
Onik Gasparyan became the Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander of 3rd Army Corps in 2010, being promoted to commander on 11 April 2012.
5.
Onik Gasparyan was promoted to the rank of Major General on 21 January 2015, which allowed him to become the Deputy Chief of General Staff in July 2016 and First Deputy Chief of General Staff in June 2017.
6.
Onik Gasparyan was previously considered for the role in 2018, when the media reported he would be appointed.
7.
Onik Gasparyan comes from Ijevan, the same town as Prime Minister Pashinyan, so it was speculated that this could have hindered his appointment, in case there would be any perception of favoritism.
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Onik Gasparyan's appointment came shortly before clashes on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in July 2020, which was followed by the outbreak of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war with Azerbaijan.
9.
At the recommendation of Prime Minister Pashinyan, Onik Gasparyan was promoted to the rank of Colonel-General on 15 October 2020, during the war.
10.
However, as he did not send the motion itself to the Constitutional Court for review, Onik Gasparyan's dismissal is to come into effect by force of law.
11.
The General Staff announced that Onik Gasparyan will stay in his role for eight days after the president makes his appeal to the Constitutional Court.
12.
Onik Gasparyan released a statement where he refused to accept his dismissal and announced his intention to dispute his dismissal in court; the leadership of the Armenian Armed Forces reiterated their support for Onik Gasparyan.