Loomis said that the USA will continue to support the defense reforms being carried out in Armenia and will invest “all its resources” in the army’s transformation processes, including advisory support, experience exchange, and support programs in other areas.
The Armenian-American defense consultations took place on September 18 in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. The meeting was attended by representatives of Armenia’s Ministry of Defense, the commander of the Kansas State National Guard of the USA, and representatives of the Pentagon and the USA Ministry of Defense.
Armenian and American military personnel have been holding consultations and exercises periodically for several years. In 2023, the sides had already discussed reforms in the Armenian army, and the USA promised assistance in the professionalization of the armed forces, strengthening the professional sergeant corps, modernizing the command system, peacekeeping, military medicine, military education, combat training, and exercises.
In June, the Eagle Partner 2026 exercises (“Eagle Partner 2026”) were held in Armenia with the participation of military personnel from the USA, France, and Greece, aimed at preparing for international peacekeeping missions. Such exercises were held for the first time in September 2023.
In January 2023, Yerevan refused to host the planned joint CSTO exercises with Moscow — the Collective Security Treaty Organization — “Unbreakable Brotherhood-2023”. After that, exercises were held on the territory of Armenia in 2024 and 2025, and the Kremlin, commenting on one of the maneuvers, said that their conduct “does not contribute to stabilizing the situation”.
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