The officials included Admiral Christopher Grady, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Charles Brown, the chief of the U.S. Air Force Staff.
The Defense Ministry in Yerevan said on Wednesday that Lieutenant-General Eduard Asrian, the chief of the Armenian army’s General Staff, discussed with them U.S.-Armenian “defense partnership” and “the conduct of joint activities” stemming from it.
The two sides explored “opportunities for broader cooperation in the Air Force sector,” a ministry statement said, adding that “regional security” was also on the agenda. It gave no other details. The Pentagon issued not statements on Asrian’s trip.
The secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, Armen Grigorian, visited Washington earlier this month for talks with U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Laura Cooper, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia.
In an interview with the Armenian Service of the Voice of America published last week, Grigorian said the United States and Armenia are now discussing ways of “opening new doors” in bilateral military cooperation.
“We have made great progress. The results will be visible in the long term,” he said without elaborating.
Washington has given no indications that it could provide Armenia with weapons or other military equipment.
In September 2022, then U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and three other pro-Armenian U.S. lawmakers fuelled speculation about such military aid when they met with Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikian during a visit to Yerevan. Pelosi said the meeting was meant to “convey America’s support for Armenia's security” in the face of Azerbaijan’s “illegal and deadly attacks on the Armenian territory”
Grigorian insisted that Armenia’s close military ties with Russia are not hampering the expansion of its defense cooperation with the U.S.
Armenia’s relations with Russia and the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) have deteriorated significantly over the past year due to what Yerevan sees as a lack of support from its ex-Soviet allies in the conflict with Azerbaijan. In January, the Armenian government cancelled a CSTO military exercise which it was due to host this year.
In April, Moscow demanded explanations from Yerevan after the U.S. Department of Defense initially listed Armenia among 26 nations that will participate in an upcoming U.S.-led military exercise in Europe. The demand came after the Pentagon promptly removed the South Caucasus country from the list, citing a technical error. The Russian Foreign Ministry charged that the Defender 23 drills are part of U.S. efforts to drive a wedge between Russia and other ex-Soviet states.
