Movses Hakobyan

Movses Hakobyan (Մովսես Հակոբյան; born 4 February 1965) is a military leader and the commander of NKR Defense Army.

Biography
Hakobyan was born in the Chartar village in the Martuni region of the Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. He graduated from the secondary school of Chartar in 1982 and entered the Army Command College of Alma-Ata in the same year. From 1986 to 1987, he served in the motorized rifle regiment 553 of the Transcaucasian Military District, as an infantry platoon commander. Hakobyan then served in the Soviet armed forces stationed in Afghanistan during the Soviet-Afghan War as deputy commander of the rifle company. In 1988, he left Afghanistan and was sent to the 366 Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Transcaucasian Military District stationed in Stepanakert, where he served until March 1992. He served as first commander of the rifle platoon, then the company commander.

During the Nagorno-Karabakh War he participated in military operations in Martuni, Askeran, Martakert, Aghdam and was wounded at least three times. Hakobyan was the commander of the battalion of his native village Chartar from July-September 1992. Afterward he served as deputy commander, then the commander, of Shushi in 1992 and 1993. He was then named commander of the defense of Monteaberd from September to December. For the remainder of the war, Hakobyan was commander of the defence of Martuni. He held the position until 1998 under the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, and was then transferred to defending Askaran. From 1999 to 2001, Hakobyan held deputy positions in the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army.

On 24 July 2002, he was appointed Adviser to the Defense Minister of Armenia, and on July 2003, was chosen as the Chief of Staff of the NKR Defense Army. Hakobyan became the Defence Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh on 11 May 2007 by decree of the President of Nagorno-Karabakh Arkadi Ghukasyan.

Awards

 * 🇦🇲 Order of the Combat Cross, 2nd degree
 * 🇦🇲 Medal "For Services to the Fatherland", 1st degree
 * 🇦🇲 Order of Vardan Mamikonian
 * Hero of Artsakh (2 September 2002)
 * Order of the Combat Cross, 1st degree
 * Order of the Combat Cross, 2nd degree
 * Order of the Red Star
 * Jubilee Medal "70 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR"
 * Medal "Soldiers-internationalists"
 * Medal "from the grateful people of Afghanistan"