(Extract from the RA Law “ON NATIONAL SECURITY BODIES”)

Article 15. Powers of National Security Bodies, exercise of delegated functions (title edited by HO-268-N of 23 March 2018, supplemented by HO-328-N of 6 July 2022)

1. The National Security Bodies shall:

(1) within the scope of their competence — ensure sovereignty, inviolability of state borders, territorial integrity, constitutional order of the Republic of Armenia, rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of citizens, as well as enhance defence capacity of the Republic;

(2) co-operate, on a confidential basis, with persons having given consent thereto;

(3) conduct, as prescribed by law, operational intelligence measures;

(4) infiltrate special services and organisations of foreign states, as well as criminal groups carrying out intelligence and other activities, which may harm the national security of the Republic of Armenia;

(5) constitute an authorised body co-ordinating the implementation of activities of ensuring information security, exercise state supervision as prescribed by law;

(5.1) ensure, within the scope of their competence, information security (including cyber security) of official websites, electronic platforms and other information systems and information infrastructures of state bodies;

(5.2) co-ordinate the activities to respond to computer incidents of information systems and information infrastructures of state bodies;

(5.3) participate in the development of information security (including cyber security) norms of information systems and information infrastructures of state and local self-government bodies, information infrastructures of strategic significance for national security;

(5.4) implement supervisory function over compliance with information security (including cyber security) norms of information systems and information infrastructures of state bodies, information infrastructures of strategic significance for national security;

(5.5) co-ordinate the activities in the field of cryptographic and technical protection of information guarded by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, the procedure for implementation whereof shall be approved by the decision of the Government. 

(5.6) develop a uniform procedure for the organisation of counteraction against technical intelligence in the Republic of Armenia, which shall be approved by the decision of the Government;

(6) — when fulfilling official duties — use means of communication belonging to state and local self-government bodies and means for detection thereof, and in urgent cases — also means of communication belonging to organisations and natural persons and means for detection thereof, with adequate compensation;

(7) use, in urgent cases, vehicles belonging to natural persons and organisations for preventing crimes, chasing and arresting persons having committed crime or suspected in the commission thereof, taking natural persons in need of emergency medical care to institutions providing medical assistance and medical services, as well as for reaching the scene of the incident. The National Security Bodies shall, as prescribed by law, be obliged to compensate the expenses incurred thereby or the damage caused thereto;

(8) enter — as prescribed by law — residential and other constructions, land plots, constructions of organisations when chasing persons suspected in the commission of crime, where there are sufficient data to assume that crime has been committed or is being committed therein and that delay may put the life and health of citizens at risk;

(9) check identification documents of natural persons and officials, where there are sufficient grounds for suspecting them in the commission of crime;

(10) arrest persons having infiltrated or made an attempt of infiltrating the controlled areas of facilities under special regime and other protected facilities, as well as check their identification documents, receive explanations, search those persons, examine and seize their things and documents;

(11) submit, under the prescribed procedure, recommendations or motions to state bodies and organisations, related to elimination of security threats, as well as reasons and conditions contributing to the commission of crimes, disclosure, prevention and disruption whereof is assigned to the jurisdiction of the Authorised Body;

(12) receive (including on-line), as prescribed by law, information from state and local self-government bodies and organisations necessary for the fulfilment of duties assigned to the National Security Bodies, except for the cases when special procedure for receiving information is prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia;

(13) use information systems, technical centres envisaged for conducting analyses, as well as for making audio and video recordings, filming and photography for operational intelligence in order to co-ordinate the activities of the National Security Bodies and summarise the results;

(14) conduct criminological and other examinations, as well as studies;

(15) co-operate, within the scope of competences of the National Security Bodies, with special services and law-enforcement bodies of foreign states based on international treaties, documents regulating sector-specific co-operation of the Republic of Armenia, and in exceptional cases – on a reciprocal basis, as well as exchange operational information, special technical and other means therewith under the prescribed procedure and based on co-operation;

(16) participate, as prescribed by law and within their competences, in the development of draft international treaties of the Republic of Armenia and conclude civil-law contracts;

(17) implement measures aimed at ensuring their own security (including counteraction against technical intelligence means of foreign states in the system of the Authorised Body), protecting the information of the National Security Bodies, containing state secrets, use technical means for the purpose of preventing and disrupting infiltration of special services and organisations of foreign states, criminal groups and separate individuals;

(18) use documents of state bodies and organisations, other means necessary for disguise for the purpose of disguising the employees of the National Security Bodies, subdivisions, constructions and vehicles of the National Security Bodies;

(19) conduct scientific researches into fundamental issues of national security of the Republic of Armenia;

(20) use, on a contractual basis, residential and other constructions of natural persons and organisations;

(21) have, as prescribed by law, relevant educational institutions for the purpose of professional training of the personnel;

(22) carry out training of personnel with or without compensation for special services, security services of organisations of foreign states, where it does not contradict the principles of activities of the National Security Bodies;

(23) submit information on issues pertaining to the national security of the Republic of Armenia to the Prime Minister, and upon his or her assignment — to other state bodies and organisations;

(24) disclose, prevent and disrupt intelligence and other subversive activities of special services and organisations of foreign states, as well as of separate individuals, aimed against the security of the Republic of Armenia;

(25) collect intelligence information for the purpose of ensuring the security of the Republic of Armenia, enhancing its economic, scientific and technical potential, as well as strengthening its state security;

(26) disclose, prevent and disrupt crimes that became known during the exercise of their powers provided for by law, carry out search of persons having committed those crimes or persons suspected of committing those crimes;

(27) disclose, prevent and disrupt acts of terrorism;

(28) develop and implement, jointly with the relevant state bodies, measures aimed at fight against corruption in state and local self-government bodies, illegal trafficking and smuggling of weapons and narcotic drugs related to foreign states, legalisation of proceeds of crime, armed groups, criminal groups, persons and organisations that intend violent change of constitutional order of the Republic of Armenia;

(29) ensure — within the scope of their competence — security in state bodies and institutions of the Republic of Armenia, Armed Forces and other troops of the Republic of Armenia;

(30) ensure — within the scope of their competence — the security of military and industrial complex, security in the fields of atomic energy, transport and communication, economy, finance and industry, as well as of strategic facilities and in the field of primary research and development of the Republic of Armenia;

(31) participate in the development and implementation of measures aimed at the protection of information containing state secrets, control the process of protection of state secrets in state bodies, military formations and organisations, implement, under the prescribed procedure, measures with regard to granting permission of access to information containing state secrets to citizens;

(32) undertake measures, aimed at ensuring the security of the organisations and citizens of the Republic of Armenia beyond its borders;

(33) ensure the security of diplomatic representations of foreign states in the territory of the Republic of Armenia;

(34)    participate in ensuring, within the scope of competence thereof and jointly with competent state bodies, the security during assemblies and public events held in the territory of the Republic of Armenia;

(35) carry out registration and centralised record-registration of radioelectronic communication means, radio data and radio transmissions through radio monitoring, disclose radio transmissions and radio waves of radioelectronic means posing threat to the national security of the Republic of Armenia or used for illegal purposes;

(36) participate, pursuant to the legislation, in the solution of issues related to acquisition or termination of citizenship of the Republic of Armenia, entry into and exit from the territory of the Republic of Armenia by the citizens of the Republic of Armenia, foreign nationals and stateless persons, as well as status of stay in the Republic of Armenia of foreign nationals and stateless persons;

(37) preserve mobilisation readiness of the National Security Bodies of the Republic of Armenia;

(38) participate in the development of state policy in the fields of protection of state information resources within information and telecommunication systems of the Republic of Armenia, cryptographic and technical protection of information, counteraction against technical intelligence, as well as implement that policy;

(39) provide the President, Prime Minister, relevant officials of state and local self-government bodies, organisations of the Republic with means of government communication and other types of special communication, as prescribed by the decision of the Government;

(40) carry out training and re-training, as well as advanced training of personnel for the National Security Bodies;

(41) carry out protection of the state border of the Republic of Armenia, in compliance with the legislation;

(42) organise and carry out counter-intelligence activities, determine the procedure for undertaking counter-intelligence measures and for using covert methods and means while undertaking them, as well as define the procedure for infiltration of special services and organisations of foreign states by National Security Bodies;

(43) assist in the preservation and reinforcement of combat readiness and combat training of the Armed Forces and other military formations of the Republic of Armenia, as well as governing bodies thereof;

(44) receive, develop and analyse information on dangers posing threat to the security of the Republic of Armenia, as well as foresee those dangers;

(45) participate, as prescribed by law, in the measures undertaken during martial law or state of emergency;

(46) prescribe the procedure for applying and assigning real and conventional names in the National Security Bodies;

(47) establish, as prescribed by law, restrictions and norms on the use of lands of special significance, develop and submit recommendations related to the procedure for using lands of special significance, protection zones, special regulatory provisions, as well as the procedure for carrying out urban development activities;

(48) publish, within the scope of their competences, acts on ensuring the national security and oversee the process of implementation thereof by state and local self-government bodies, organisations; 

(49) second the official representatives of the National Security Bodies to foreign states for the purpose of increasing the effectiveness of fight against international crime, upon the consent of special services or competent bodies of those states;

(50) inform the Prime Minister and, upon his or her consent — the bodies of state administration system and territorial administration bodies on the dangers posing threat to the security of the Republic of Armenia;

(51) ensure the economic security of the Republic of Armenia and fight against economic crimes within the scope of their competence;

(52) receive radio frequency domains from organisations in charge of distribution and designation of radio frequencies, as well as rent communication lines and communication channels from the relevant organisations of the Republic of Armenia for the exclusive use of government communication and other types of special communication in the Republic of Armenia and outside its territory;

(53) ensure operational postal services (except for the diplomatic mail) for the President, National Assembly, Government, Prime Minister and ministries, autonomous bodies, territorial administration bodies, Supreme Judicial Council, courts, Prosecutor’s Office, Investigation Committee, Special Investigation Service, Central Bank and other state bodies of the Republic, military units (except for the military units of the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Armenia) located in the territory of the Republic of Armenia, as well as diplomatic representations accredited in the Republic of Armenia and diplomatic representations of the Republic of Armenia in foreign states;

(54) transfer correspondence of state and diplomatic bodies, having special significance or secret or top secret and other official correspondence, as well as ensure preservation thereof;

(55) establish communication, information and data transmission systems for co-ordination of the activities and summarisation of the results of the activities of the Authored Body, means of ensuring information security and information protection (including cryptographic means of protection), define, in compliance with the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, the procedure for record-registration, storage and use of operational, archive and other materials related to the activities of the Authorised Body;

(56) generalise, within the scope of their competences, the practice of application of the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, submit to the Prime Minister, under the prescribed procedure, recommendations with regard to improvement thereof, participate in the development of the relevant draft regulatory legal acts, as well as carry out methodological guidance of the National Security Bodies while organising legal support to the activities thereof;

(57) prescribe uniform requirements for the organisation of workflow management and archive keeping in the Authorised Body, pursuant to the legislation of the Republic of Armenia;

(58) handle publications and communications related to the activities of the National Security Bodies in the press and via other mass media;

(59) organise, implement and control special measures for counteraction against technical intelligence in the state and local self-government bodies, as well as representations of the Republic of Armenia in foreign states, ensure, as prescribed by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, expert examination with regard to introduction of information and telecommunication systems, as well as software support and protective measures;

(60) ensure protection of life, health, honour and dignity, as well as property of military servants and persons carrying out civil tasks and providing technical maintenance of the National Security Bodies, persons assisting those bodies, participants of criminal procedure, family members and relatives thereof from criminal encroachments;

(61) organise reception of citizens, consider their petitions, applications and appeals within the scope of their competence;

(62) prepare, under the prescribed procedure, documents disguising officials of bodies carrying out operational intelligence activities, secret agents and persons, collaborating, on a confidential basis, with those bodies, as well as organisations, institutions, constructions put into operation, special technical means and vehicles established by bodies carrying out operational intelligence activities;

(63) participate in the development of technical requirements for armament and special equipment, as well as for armament and special equipment being created, carry out allocation of orders for accumulation, storage and repair of armament and special equipment, as well as orders for supply and repair work thereof;

(64) have, under the prescribed procedure, special subdivisions for the fulfilment of duties of the National Security Bodies;

(65) as performance of other function of border supervision or border control:

(a) carry out functions of control over the violations of the legislation related to passport and road traffic issues at the crossing points of the state border;

(b) other functions of supervision or control provided for by law.

2. Within the meaning of this Article, the performance of other function of border supervision or border control shall be the performance — by national security bodies at the crossing points of the state border — of supervision or control functions vested in other state bodies by law and in the case provided for by law — transferred to national security bodies.

3. When performing other function of border supervision or border control, national security bodies shall be guided by the legislation regulating the field of the given function.

4. National security bodies shall perform other function of border supervision or border control in case it is directly provided for by the law regulating the field of the function.

5. National security bodies shall perform the function provided for by part 2 of this Article on behalf of the National Security Body.

6. Certain issues related to the performance of the function provided for by part 2 of this Article may be regulated by the decision of the Government.