Yerkrapah

Yerkrapah Volunteer Union («Երկրապահ» կամավորական միություն, ԵԿՄ) or Yerkrapah Union of Veterans meaning Defends of the Land is a non-governmental group that consisted of 6,000 Nagorno-Karabakh War veterans, formed by Vazgen Sargsyan. The Yerkrapah is a large and influential veteran group. The Yerkrapah Union was actively involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh War although after the death of Sargsyan, Yerkrapah began to decline in support in politics. Yerkrapah had incorporated between 5,000 to 30,000 veterans. According to Thomas de Waal, after 1994 "the veterans' group Yerkrapah became the most powerful organization in the country."