Armenian Sapper Wounded In Syria

One of the Armenian demining officers recently deployed to Syria has been seriously wounded while clearing landmines near Aleppo.

According to Armenia’s Center for Humanitarian Demining and Expertise (CHDE), the sapper hit an improvised explosive device and was rushed to hospital on Thursday.

“According to our information, his right foot was amputated,” Nazeli Elbakian, a spokeswoman for the center overseen by the Armenian Defense Ministry, told RFE/RL’s Armenian service on Friday.

“Doctors now describe his condition as normal. He will be transported to Armenia,” said Elbakian. She refused to identify the injured officer.

The officer was among 83 Armenian army medics, sappers and other servicemen who were sent to Syria on February 8 in what the Armenian military described as a humanitarian mission coordinated with Russia. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu thanked his Armenian counterpart Davit Tonoyan for the deployment when they met in Moscow on the same day.

Russian troops stationed in Syria were tasked with protecting the small Armenian contingent and providing it with logistical assistance.

The United States, which has been highly critical of the Russian military presence in Syria, criticized the Armenian deployment on February 13.

“We do not support any engagement with Syrian military forces, whether that engagement is to provide assistance to civilians or is military in nature,” the U.S. State Department said in a statement. “Nor do we support any cooperation between Armenia and Russia for this mission.”

Armenian officials downplayed the criticism, saying that U.S.-Armenian relations will not deteriorate because of it.

In a February 8 statement announcing the dispatch of the Armenian military personnel, the Defense Ministry in Yerevan cited “the severe humanitarian situation” in Aleppo and “written requests from the Syrian side.” It also pointed to the existence of an Armenian community in Syria.

The CHDE stressed on Thursday that its demining operations in and around in war-ravaged Syrian city are continuing.