Armenia and Israel held a new round of diplomatic engagement in Jerusalem, where Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Vahan Kostanyan met with Israeli Foreign Ministry Director-General Eden Bar Tal and the two sides convened the 12th round of political consultations. Both governments signaled readiness to deepen bilateral cooperation and discussed regional developments in the South Caucasus and the Middle East, according to Armenia’s Foreign Ministry.
During the meeting, both sides emphasized their readiness to work toward enhancing relations between Armenia and Israel, including in the political and economic spheres. The parties also exchanged views on developments in the South Caucasus and the Middle East, a region where Armenia continues to navigate significant challenges.
During the visit, detailed political consultations were held between the foreign ministries of both countries. The sides discussed opportunities for cooperation in both bilateral and multilateral formats. High technologies, medicine, agriculture, and tourism were highlighted as areas of mutual interest and sectors with notable potential for cooperation.
Armenian-Israeli relations have been deeply strained by Israel’s extensive military support for Azerbaijan, which enabled Azerbaijan’s campaigns against Armenia and Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh). For years, Israel has been one of Azerbaijan’s main arms suppliers, providing a large share of its imported weaponry, including drones, missiles, and other advanced systems that played a decisive role in the 2020 war. Israel also supplied radars, anti-tank missiles, grenade launchers, and night vision devices, all of which were used during the 44-day war in Artsakh. Yerevan called on Tel Aviv to halt this weapons trade with Azerbaijan, stressing the serious threat it posed to Armenian-Israeli relations. This occurred alongside Turkey’s political and military backing of Azerbaijan, including joint exercises and the reported deployment of Syrian fighters to the front. During and after the 2020 war, Israeli weapons continued to strengthen Azerbaijan’s capabilities, while Ankara and Baku maintained a tight military and strategic partnership framed as “one nation, two states.” This support coincided with Azerbaijan’s nine-month blockade of the Lachin corridor, which international human rights organizations and UN experts warned created a severe humanitarian crisis for the Armenian population of Artsakh by cutting off food, medicine, and basic supplies. In September 2023, following the blockade, Azerbaijan’s military offensive forced more than 100,000 indigenous Armenians from Artsakh to flee to Armenia, an exodus that Armenia and numerous international observers have described as the ethnic cleansing of the region’s Armenian population.
