NSS to become political body if turned into ministry: NSS director

Turning the National Security Service into ministry will make it a political body, NSS director Artur Vanetsyan told the reporters today.

“I will be subjected to any political decision. If a decision is made to turn the NSS into a ministry I will have to obey the decision of the political force, but I would also like to say that in any case minister is a political post. If the NSS minister is a political figure and be engaged in politics he will push forward and defend the interests of his political force,” Vanetsyan said.

To the observation that it means that the army is a political body, the NSS director said, “The army has minister and a chief of staff who has nothing to do with politics and is army’s direct head.”

As to whether the NSS is reporting on its activities, Vanetsyan said that the ill practice that the NSS was not answering to the raised questions has been eradicated.

“There was no case at least during the past 10 months that we ignored and did not answer to any question, if of course it is not a state secret,” the NSS director said.