Armenia to Hold New Joint Drills With US Forces Amid Rapidly Fraying Ties With Russia

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) shake hands as they attend the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Yerevan, Armenia, Nov. 23, 2022. Hayk Baghdasaryan/Photolure via Reuters

Armenia, a nominal ally of Russia, will host elements of the U.S. Army later this month for joint military exercises.

“In the framework of preparation for participation in international peacekeeping missions, Armenia–U.S. joint exercises will be held from July 15 to July 24 in Armenia,” Armenia’s defense ministry said in a July 6 statement.

The U.S. military has confirmed the planned exercises, dubbed “Eagle Partner 2024.”

According to the U.S. Army Europe and Africa (EURAF), the planned drills will “build on Armenian and U.S. collective ability to conduct peacekeeping operations by performing gunnery and stability training, weapons familiarization, and range management.”

The exercises are also intended to “enhance the longstanding partnership between the United States and Armenia by increasing interoperability and readiness,” according to EURAF.

The nine-day exercises will involve Armenian and U.S. military personnel, including members of the Kansas National Guard.

An EURAF spokesman told The Epoch Times that “approximately 270 U.S. service members are scheduled to take part in exercise Eagle Partner.”

A former Soviet republic of fewer than 3 million people, Armenia is located in the South Caucasus region, which Russia has traditionally viewed as its backyard.

Moscow has yet to comment on the military exercises.

In September 2023, similar drills—also held in Armenia—drew angry reactions from Russian officials.

“Members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) should hold maneuvers with their allies,” Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, said at the time.

Since 1991, Armenia has been a member of the CSTO, a Moscow-led security pact made up of six former Soviet republics.

The organization also includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.

After last year’s joint drills, the head of the Russian parliament’s foreign affairs committee accused Washington of using Armenia to establish an “anti-Russian foothold” in the South Caucasus.

A State Department spokesperson responded by accusing Moscow of sending “peacekeepers” to CSTO member-states—including Armenia—to “create a false perception of Russia being a good-faith mediator to conflicts in the former USSR.”

Referring to the longstanding territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the spokesperson went on to assert that Moscow “exploits these conflicts to its own benefit.”

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov attends a joint press conference with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Moscow on April 8, 2022. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Reuters

Deepening Ties with West

Within the past year, Armenia under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has appeared to tilt westward—at the expense of its alliance with Russia.

In February, Mr. Pashinyan announced that his government had effectively suspended relations with the Moscow-based CSTO.

In past remarks, Mr. Pashinyan has blamed the CSTO—and, by extension, Russia—for failing to stop a military offensive carried out last year by Azerbaijan in the flashpoint Nagorno–Karabakh region.

Last month, the Armenian leader explicitly said his country would—sooner or later—formally withdraw from the CSTO.

“We will leave,” he told Armenian lawmakers on June 12.

“We will decide when to exit ... [and] we won’t return.”

On the same day as he made the remarks, James O’Brien, U.S. assistant secretary of state for Europe and Eurasia, met with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Yerevan, Armenia’s capital.

According to a joint statement issued by the U.S. and Armenian governments, the two diplomats “reviewed progress on strengthening bilateral relations, and outlined a vision for deepening ties in the coming year ... to upgrade the status of our bilateral dialogue to a Strategic Partnership Commission.”

The statement noted that the two countries “look forward to outlining the specific lines of effort to deepen our relations in the coming months.” The joint statement also referred to “Armenia’s aspirations for closer cooperation with Euro-Atlantic institutions and the West.”

In a July 4 message to U.S. President Joe Biden, Mr. Pashinyan reiterated his government’s commitment to “expanding cooperation” with the United States.

Mr. Mirzoyan voiced similar sentiments in a social media post.

Commenting on the messages, a State Department spokesperson hailed U.S.–Armenia ties as “strong and getting stronger.”

“We have made significant progress to deepen U.S.–Armenia bilateral relations,” the spokesperson told The Epoch Times. “We respect Armenia’s sovereign right to pursue the relationships it so chooses.”

Last week, Alexey Overchuk, Russia’s deputy prime minister, said Moscow continues to view Armenia—technically still a CSTO member—as an “ally.”

On the same day, however, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman repeated claims that the United States was seeking to drive a wedge between Moscow and its regional allies.

“We are convinced that stability and security in the South Caucasus ... should be ensured by the countries of the region themselves,” the spokesman said on July 3.

On July 8, Yerevan announced that Mr. Mirzoyan would travel to Washington on July 9 and July 10 to attend a landmark NATO summit.

“Minister Mirzoyan will take part in an event with NATO partners on the sidelines of the NATO summit, as well as in other events dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the organization,” Armenia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

“Bilateral meetings are also planned.”

Moscow didn’t respond by press time to the announcement by Yerevan.

Reuters contributed to this report.