“I can assure you that I will do my best to further develop Russian-Armenian defense cooperation,” the Russian Defense Ministry quoted him as telling Shoigu at the start of their talks.
Papikian, who was appointed as defense minister in November, began his first visit to Russia in his current capacity on Thursday just hours after the Russian military launched a large-scale attack on Ukraine condemned by the West. Official press releases on his meeting with Shoigu made no explicit mention of the Russian invasion.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Papikian said Moscow and Yerevan have to constantly deal with “new challenges and threats.”
“It’s obvious that all these challenges and threats facing our states can only be overcome by acting jointly,” he said.
A statement released by the Armenian Defense Minister said the two ministers discussed Russian-Armenian military cooperation as well as “international and regional security issues.” It said they praised Russian efforts to help “stabilize the military-political situation” in the South Caucasus.
“The discussions also touched upon the ongoing reforms and modernization of the Armenian Armed Forces,” added the statement.
Armenia moved to deepen its already close military ties with Russia shortly after the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire. Moscow has since deployed troops in Armenia’s Syunik province sandwiched between Azerbaijan and its Nakhichevan exclave.
Meeting with Papikian’s predecessor Arshak Karapetian in Moscow last August, Shoigu said Moscow will continue to help Yerevan reform, rearm and modernize the Armenian army.
Papikian met with Shoigu two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev signed in the Kremlin a joint declaration on “allied cooperation” between their nations.
The declaration says, among other things, that Russia and Azerbaijan will avoid “any actions directed against each other” and could consider “providing each other with military assistance.”
