U.S. General Charles Q. Brown Jr., Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, praised growing U.S.-Armenia military ties and emphasized the importance of countering Russia’s “malign influence in the region” during his meeting with Armenia’s top general, Lieutenant General Edward Asryan, in Washington D.C. late Wednesday.
General Brown expressed gratitude to Armenia’s First Deputy Defense Minister and Chief of the Army’s General Staff for the productive military cooperation between the U.S. and Armenia, reaffirming the significance of strengthening their defense relationship, according to Joint Staff Spokesman Jereal Dorsey.
Additionally, the military leaders discussed Armenia’s military modernization initiatives, and Gen. Brown offered U.S. support for these efforts through the State Partnership Program and additional training opportunities. The Chairman also expressed concern about Russia’s malignant influence in the region and the need to counter them, Dorsey added in a brief statement.
Armenia’s Defense Ministry (MoD) did not mention Russia in its readout of the talks. Instead, it emphasized that “the two sides discussed topics of mutual interest, acknowledging the continued development of Armenia-U.S. defense cooperation. The importance of sustaining joint activities was underscored, and a range of issues related to regional security were also addressed.”
“The U.S. reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the ongoing transformation and reforms of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia,” added the MoD’s statement.
Earlier, Asryan met with three other U.S. military officials, including Mike Miller, Director of the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency, who oversees training, advising, and equipping foreign militaries. During his visit to the U.S., Asryan also met with Brig. Gen. Allen Pepper, Commander of the U.S. Army’s Security Support Command, and Teresa Guenov, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. In these meetings, the parties discussed the current state of Armenia-U.S. defense cooperation, upcoming programs, and regional security issues.
In July, U.S. and Armenian troops held a joint exercise in Armenia for the second time in less than a year. They practiced a joint peacekeeping operation in the presence of three U.S. generals who arrived in Armenia for the occasion.
Russia denounced the drills amid the continuing deterioration of its relations with Armenia, stating that the exercises would further damage Russian-Armenian military ties and put Armenia’s security at greater risk. Meanwhile, a senior U.S. State Department official announced plans to soon appoint a resident adviser to the Armenian Defense Ministry as part of an ongoing effort to upgrade U.S.-Armenia relations to a strategic partnership.
Thus far, the U.S. has shown no indication of providing Armenia with weapons or significant military aid. Armenian opposition groups point to this in their criticism of Armenia’s pro-Western shift from its traditional geopolitical orientation.
In February, Prime Minister Pashinyan announced the “freezing” of Armenia’s membership in the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and has since indicated that the country may eventually leave the alliance altogether.
