Vakhtang Avakian

Vakhtang Avakian
Avakian in 2004
Born	(1950-09-04)4 September 1950 Zmrouk, Hayreniky
Died	22 January 2018(2018-01-22) (aged 67) Serop, Hayreniky
Allegiance	Republic of Syara (1974-1983) Syara (1987-2013)
Service/branch	Army of the Syaran Republic Syaran National Army
Years of service	1973-2013
Rank	Field Marshal
Battles/wars	Refusal War Imerti Conflict Zemplen War
Awards	see below

Vakhtang Avakian was a Syaran general best known for serving as the Central Command Chief of Staff for the Syaran Commonality Armed Forces during the Zemplen War.

An ethnic Hayreniky, Avakian was born to Syara's Clans in 1950. He was commissioned into the Army of the Syaran Republic in 1974, but left the service after a decade to defect to the Wardens during the Refusal War. Serving first as a battalion commander, Avakian commanded the Army of the Amant by the war's end. He became a Colonel in the SCAF after it was established in 1988, and was promoted to Brigadier General in 1993. He was given command of the 26th Mechanized Infantry Division just a year later and promoted to Major General, then promoted to Lt. General in 2003. He was promoted to Colonel General and given command of First Army just before the outbreak of the Imerti Conflict, where he organized the successful Syaran counter-attack and drove Ruvelkan forces from Imerti. In 2006 he was promoted to Field Marshal and selected as Chief of Staff of Central Command, the highest position within the SCAF.

As Chief of Staff when the Zemplen War began, Avakian was responsible for mobilizing and deploying Syaran forces in the early months of the conflict. He successfully organized the August Offensive that drove Ruvelkan forces from the disputed regions, but following Chancellor Edviná Molnár's refusal to come to the negotiating table Avakian proved pivotal in convincing Executive Dragomir Zhelev that the SCAF could destroy the Imperial Armed Forces of Ruvelka, leading to Operation Aspis. Despite the failure of the SCAF to destroy the Ruvelkan military as a fighting force, Avakian remained convinced that Syara could push Ruvelka out of the war through a decisive battlefield victory. After suffering heavy losses during the Battle of Sagerejo and Operation Harpe Avakian suspended major offensive operations due to heavy Syaran casualties. Avakian intended to rebuild Syaran forces in time for a major strategic offensive in Fall 2010, but Ruvelka's Operation Homefront resulted in the expulsion of all Syaran troops from Ruvelka, and forced Syara to sue for peace. Avakian remained the Chief of Staff until 2012, when he stepped down and announced his intention to retire, which occurred in 2013. A lifelong smoker, he lost his battle with lung cancer in 2018 at the age of 67.

Avakian's tenure as Chief of Staff became the subject of much controversy in the aftermath of the Zemplen War. Many analysts considered Avakian's leadership during the conflict to have been poor, with his failure to conduct long term strategic planning directly undermining Syaran chances at defeating the Ruvelkans. His prefernce for a straight forward battlefield victory despite Syara's lack of preparation for an extended war led to heavy Syaran losses without much to show for it, and constant offensives eventually resulted in Syaran forces being in a poor position to resist the final Ruvelkan strategic offensive. Many observors noted Avakian's focus on the tactical situations limited the ability of the SCAF to link it's battlefield successes to a cohesive strategic victory.