World
US bolsters military ties with Armenia, irking Russia
The US is conducting joint military drills with Armenia this week as the landlocked former Soviet Union republic faces off with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh and Russia grows increasingly frustrated with Yerevan’s tilt to the West.
Though military ties between the US and Armenia are not new, the timing of the joint drills has raised eyebrows in Baku and Moscow.
For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
State Department officials said “Eagle Partner 2023” was pre-planned and not a reaction to any specific event or situation. They also said there were no complications with Azerbaijan over the drills.
The US Army said the exercise from Sept. 11-20 would involve around 85 American soldiers training alongside 175 Armenian soldiers near the Armenian capital.
The US and Armenia both said the exercise was planned to prepare the Armenian 12th Peacekeeping Brigade for a NATO Operational Capabilities Concept (OCC) evaluation under the NATO Partnership for Peace program later this year.
“Eagle Partner is a vital opportunity for our soldiers from our two nations to build new relationships at the tactical level and to increase interoperability for peacekeeping operations,” said US Army Col. Martin O’Donnell.
A senior State Department official said the biggest reaction to the military drills was from Russia. “I think that’s who was most concerned about it,” the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters.
Russia has been angry at what it perceives as “hostile” decisions by its longtime ally and neighbor, Armenia.
The Armenian prime minister’s wife recently went on an official visit to Ukraine in a show of support, something which also drew the ire of the Kremlin.
Last week the Russian foreign ministry summoned Yerevan’s ambassador in what it said was due to Armenia’s transfer of humanitarian aid to “Kyiv’s Nazi regime.”
Complaints over Russia’s role as a peacekeeping force in the Armenian conflict with Azerbaijan also added to the turbulent times between Moscow and Yerevan.
“Russia, frankly, failed Armenia in ensuring its security,” said Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. “Given the sanctions against Russia and the attrition of its military in Ukraine, Armenia is naturally looking to Washington,” he told Al Arabiya English.
Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan criticized Russia’s failure to convince Baku to reopen the Lachin Corridor, and he went as far as calling on the Russians to allow an international peacekeeping force to take its place in Nagorno-Karabakh.
“Russia has used deployments to and basing in Collective Security Treaty Organization member states, including Armenia, to create a false perception of Russia being a good faith partner or mediator to conflicts in the former USSR,” a State Department official said.
US-Armenia military ties ‘multifaceted’
But the recent military drills are an example of how the US is seeking alliances around the globe, with one Pentagon official calling the bilateral ties “multifaceted and cooperative.”
Armenia’s ties with the US military date back to 2003 with the Kansas National Guard as part of the Pentagon’s State Partnership Program.
The Pentagon official said the Armenian military had shown a commendable commitment to global peace and security by actively participating in various US-sponsored training programs and exercises.
Armenia also contributes to international peacekeeping missions, some of which have been supported or spearheaded by the US.
While Armenia is part of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), placing it in a unique geopolitical position, “its development of an Individual Partnership Action Plan with NATO- an alliance to which the US is intrinsically bound- underscores its intention to foster a cooperative relationship with Western military institutions,” said the Pentagon official.
The US continues to map out future areas of cooperation with the Armenian military.
This week’s joint exercises are another example of how the US aims to bolster its ties with Armenia and something mutually beneficial.
“Essentially, the US-Armenia defense relationship is both cooperative and adaptive, evolving in response to regional challenges and mutual aspirations for a secure global landscape,” the Pentagon official told Al Arabiya English.
Read more: Russia protests to Armenia as tensions rise over disputed Caucasus region