Monte Melkonian: A talented scholar and defender of Karabakh’s self-determination

In assessing the grand victories of May, in particular, the victory won at the World War II and the liberation of Shushi, it is important not only to perceive the value of feat of arms of the Homeland’s defender, but also to represent him as a gifted person, a patriot and an intellectual. In the history of the Armenian people instances are not rare when a scholar or a man of art, at a fatal hour for his people, rose in arms to defend his Homeland, the spiritual values ​​and glorious traditions of the nation. Such examples were numerous, especially in the 20th century, and in particular – in the Artsakh liberation war. In this aspect, characteristic is the image of Monte Melkonian, the National Hero of the Republic of Armenia (RA). It is no mere chance, that Hayk Kotanjian – Advisor of the RA Minister of Defense, Head of the Institute for National Strategic Studies, MOD, RA, Doctor of Political Science, visiting Levon Shant Secondary School N 4 in Yerevan – where within the anniversary of the liberation of Shushi an event devoted to the memory of Monte Melkonian was organized by schoolchildren of 5-6 classes – presented them with a bibliographically unique edition of Monte Melkonian’s Master’s Thesis titled « Urartian Rock-Cut Tombs. Description and Analysis ». The General’s gift embraced a special meaning, as it was intended to introduce…