Ներքին գործերի նախարարություն Nerk’in gortseri nakhararut’yun | |
Agency overview | |
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Formed | 9 January 2023 |
Preceding agency |
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Jurisdiction | Government of Armenia |
Headquarters | Yerevan |
Minister responsible |
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Agency executives |
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Child agency |
The Ministry of Internal Affairs ( Armenian: Ներքին գործերի նախարարություն, romanized: Nerk’in gortseri nakhararut’yun) is the Armenian government ministry which oversees the Police of Armenia, the Migration and Citizenship Service, and the Rescue Service. [1] The Ministry is headed by the Minister of Internal Affairs, appointed by the decree of the Prime Minister of Armenia. The minister in charge has been Vahe Ghazaryan since 9 January 2023. [2]
On 21 June 1992, President Levon Ter-Petrosyan created the Ministry of Internal Affairs from the former Soviet Armenian Interior Ministry and the Soviet Internal Troops. [3] It operated until December 2002, when the ministry was reorganized into the Police of Armenia. [4]
In 2019, the Ministry of Justice recommended the re-establishment of the ministry as part of the government's three-year strategy of police reforms. [5] In 2021, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian announced plans to recreate the Interior Ministry. [6] [7]
On 24 November 2022, during a regular Cabinet meeting chaired by Pashinyan a draft law on the reestablishment of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was adopted, [8] with the Ministry of Emergency Situations ceasing its activities according to the transition schedule. [9] In December, the National Assembly of Armenia approved a government proposal to set up the ministry. [10] Pashinyan noted that the purpose of the creation of the interior ministry was aimed at “increasing the effectiveness of the work of the police” [11] and the move was supported by members of parliament, one of whom said that it would increase “democratic oversight” of the police. [12]