Comprehensive Security & Resilience Project

Comprehensive Security & Resilience Project is a flagship initiative of the Yerevan-based think tank Women & Global Security Architecture (WGSA), launched in 2024 to reinforce Armenia’s evolving security landscape through inclusive, expert-driven international dialogue.

The initiative was conceived in response to Armenia’s urgent need to reform and modernize its security architecture amid growing internal and external challenges. In 2024, the project, implemented with support from the Governments of Estonia, Finland, and Sweden, focused on Comprehensive Defence and Security. It included the inaugural Comprehensive Security & Resilience International Conference, held in Yerevan on June 5-6, as well as the development of policy recommendations, and outreach activities aimed at promoting knowledge-based public discourse and participatory, informed approaches to security reform in Armenia.

The 2024 conference brought together participants from Armenia, Finland, Estonia, Sweden, and the EU Mission in Armenia (EUMA) , assembling representatives from civil society, think tanks, academia, media, government institutions, and diplomatic missions. Its success in fostering multi-stakeholder engagement and sparking policy-level dialogue laid the foundation for institutionalizing the conference for strategic dialogue and action.

Armenia now stands at a critical juncture in the transformation of its security architecture and the consolidation of its sovereignty and democratic future. The development of a new National Security Strategy, implementation of the Comprehensive Defence and Security Concept, and the pursuit of diversified foreign and security policies present a unique opportunity to embed resilience across all sectors of national life – not only in defense, but also in social, informational, and institutional domains.

This transformation is unfolding amid unprecedented global uncertainty. The erosion of traditional security guarantees, rising geopolitical fragmentation, and intensifying hybrid threats are destabilizing even the most established democracies.  For small, reform-minded states like Armenia, resilience is both a strategic necessity and a democratic imperative. At the same time, authoritarian actors continue to target institutional vulnerabilities and exploit societal divides, seeking to erode public trust and derail the country`s democratic progress.

With this context in mind, WGSA, together with its partners and supporters, enters the 2025 phase of the Comprehensive Security & Resilience Project, expanding its scope and international engagement. This year, the United Kingdom, the International Practitioners’ Partnership Network (PractNet), and the Hepatica Foundation join as new international partners, while private sector supporters such as FINNI and Tsaghkunk Restaurant & Glkhatun contribute to strengthening the project’s impact. In 2025, the project places a deliberate and strategic focus on resilience.

Project Goal – 2025 Edition 

The overarching goal of the 2025 Project cycle (July 1 – December 31) is to deepen Armenia’s resilience through strategic and pragmatic dialogue, multi-stakeholder collaboration, and international partnerships. This reflects a growing recognition that national security is inseparable from resilient democratic institutions, a vibrant civic space, robust societal cohesion, and values-based strategic partnerships. 

The 2025 cycle is structured around three core components:

• The Comprehensive Security & Resilience International Conference – 2025, to be held in Yerevan on 15–16 September, bringing together high-level local and international stakeholders for in-depth dialogue
• A series of webinars targeting youth, civil society, media, and international actors addressing diverse aspects of resilience
• A Follow-Up Paper synthesizing key insights and actionable policy recommendations
• Continued advocacy and outreach to promote democratic resilience and public engagement.

Key objectives include:

• Fostering inclusive and forward-looking dialogue on Armenia’s forthcoming National Security Strategy, current and prospective strategic partnerships, military pilar of Comprehensive Security, women`s role in the armed forces, as well as strategies for countering hybrid threats and developing effective communication and defense measures against Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI)

• Promoting evidence-based policymaking through expert analysis, structured dialogue, and accessible public outputs
• Enhancing knowledge exchange and experience sharing among stakeholders from Estonia, Finland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and Armenia
• Supporting the adoption of a resilience-centered approach to national security, grounded in the insights and contributions of civil society, youth, academia, and the media.

By positioning resilience as both a strategic necessity and a democratic commitment, the 2025 edition of Comprehensive Security & Resilience Project seeks to equip Armenia with the strategic, societal, and institutional capacities required to withstand ongoing and future shocks and to shape a secure, sovereign, and democratic future.