Armenia, U.S. sign Charter on Strategic Partnership
YEREVAN. Jan 15 (Interfax) - Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken signed a bilateral Charter on Strategic Partnership in Washington on Tuesday.
"This marks a significant milestone in the relationship between the United States and Armenia. We are establishing a U.S.-Armenian strategic partnership commission. This commission gives us a framework to expand our bilateral cooperation in a number of key areas: economic matters, security and defense, democracy," Blinken said.
The signing ceremony was broadcast live by Public Television of Armenia.
"I think it underscores a couple of things: a mutual dedication that we have to nuclear nonproliferation standards and advancing nuclear security, but also opening new avenues for our two countries to collaborate on nuclear energy, on science, and on technology," Blinken said.
"We're also working with Armenia in the realm of security and defense, and in particular to support its efforts to assert its independence and sovereignty over its own territory," he said.
A border security group will visit Armenia next week for joint work, Blinken said.
The Eagle Partner initiative will be continued to bolster peace and protect Armenia's borders, he said. "I'm also very pleased to announce today Armenia's intent to join the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS [terrorist organization banned in Russia]," Blinken said.
The U.S.-Armenian Charter on Strategic Partnership "will contribute to a more resilient, a more peaceful, a more secure, a more independent South Caucasus," he said.
In turn, Mirzoyan said that the Charter "provides a robust framework and injects greater ambition into our cooperation, it spans a wide area of fields, including strengthening economic and energy ties, connectivity, deepening defense and security cooperation."
"We appreciate the United States engagement in promoting a durable and lasting peace in the South Caucasus region. Armenia remains committed to peace agenda and its implementation, and to working closely with the United States to achieve this shared objective. I am also happy to announce that Armenia intends to join the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS," he said.
Yerevan starts negotiations on a nuclear cooperation agreement with Washington, Mirzoyan said.
"We also commence negotiations on a nuclear cooperation agreement with the United States, commonly known as 123 Agreement. It will provide a framework for cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy and mark our commitment to peaceful nuclear development under the highest standards of safety, security, and non-proliferation," he said.
The United States said earlier it was considering Armenia's access to U.S. peaceful nuclear technologies envisaged by 123 Agreement.