Businessman Ruben Vardanyan agreed to become the state minister of the government of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (Artsakh).
“I realize that I no longer have time to think, just as there is no other way but to be close to the people of Artsakh and take my share of responsibility for the future of Artsakh. In early November, I will officially take up the post of state minister,” Vardanyan wrote.
According to him, behind this decision were one and a half months of meetings with the residents of the republic, as well as with local politicians and social activists. Vardanyan writes that they want to see him as their leader, who "will rally all healthy forces around him and lead the real work to bring the country out of the crisis."
Vardanyan is an investor, venture philanthropist and entrepreneur, co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, Skolkovo Moscow School of Management and UWC Dilijan College in Armenia, and the main partner of the investment company Troika Dialog. According to Forbes, his fortune is estimated at $1 billion.
In early September, the businessman announced that he was renouncing Russian citizenship and moving to Nagorno-Karabakh: “I made a decision, realizing the risks I take, to renounce Russian citizenship and move to Artsakh as a citizen of Armenia. It was a very difficult decision for me, but it was the right thing to do.” It is noteworthy that at that time Vardanyan claimed that he did not plan to hold any public office.