Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan has presented the key security and protective features incorporated into Armenia’s new biometric passport, which, in her assessment, make it one of the most secure passports in the world.
Among the protective elements embedded in the document’s pages and barely noticeable at first glance are Armenian rosettes and geometric patterns inspired by medieval architecture. Through special processing, they have been transformed into an interconnected network whose finest lines and inscriptions can only be seen with a magnifying glass.
The second security feature is the peace dove. Under ultraviolet light, an image of a dove appears on the passport pages, while rapidly flipping through the pages creates the impression of the bird in flight.
The third key protective element is tricolor security fiber. According to Arpine Sargsyan, although security fibers are used in passports worldwide, a special solution has been developed for Armenia: fibers resembling the Armenian flag have been incorporated into the passport paper and become visible under ultraviolet light.
The minister stressed that the features presented represent only some of the security mechanisms incorporated into the new biometric passport.
New red biometric passports will be introduced in Armenia. They will meet high international standards while also reflecting Armenian identity. Accordingly, they feature an outline map of Armenia, the alphabet created by Mesrop Mashtots and the first sentence written in Armenian letters: “To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding.”
Blue passports will remain valid until their expiration dates.
