The root cause for the defeat of the Armenian forces in the second Nagorno-Karabakh War was flawed military doctrine inherited from the Soviet Union. This article analyzes the major problems faced by Armenia, uncovers the main reasons for unsuccessful innovation, tests empirical findings against some of the most authoritative theories in the field, and outlines current research on the conflict, while substantiating the analysis with established scholarship in the field of military innovation.

Keywords: Armenia, The Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, Innovation, Military Innovation, Civil-Military Relations

​Read the article: https://press.armywarcollege.edu/parameters/vol52/iss1/10/

Download the full episode transcript here: https://media.defense.gov/2023/Nov/15/2003341247/-1/-1/0/DP-3-15-PODCAST-TRANSCRIPT-AMIRKHANYAN.PDF

Author information:

Colonel Zhirayr Amirkhanyan is currently a PhD candidate at the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School. He was the head of defense policy planning branch of the Defense Policy Department at the Ministry of Defence of Armenia.