Armenian defence minister, US senator discuss military cooperation

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2 Jun 05

[No dateline, as received] The Armenian defence minister and secretary
of the Security Council under the Armenian president, Serzh Sarkisyan,
today received a [US] delegation led by Senator Chuck Hagel. The US
ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, and the deputy commander of US
European Command, Gen Charles Wald, also took part in the meeting.

Sarkisyan noted that Armenian-American relations are developing
dynamically. Armenian-American military cooperation which started
three years ago has expanded. The same can be said about the country’s
cooperation with NATO.

Senator Hagel thanked the minister for efforts in the struggle against
international terrorism and Armenia’s participation in peacekeeping
operations in Kosovo and Iraq. He said that thanks to reforms and the
establishment of democratic institutions the Armenian armed forces
have made great progress.

Touching upon the settlement of the Karabakh conflict, Sarkisyan said:
“We are convinced that the problem can be resolved only peacefully
and the OSCE Minsk Group is playing a great role in this.”