SARKISIAN SEEKS CLOSER MILITARY TIES WITH BRITAIN
By Emil Danielyan

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Oct 11 2006

Defense Minister Serzh Sarkisian called for the deepening of defense
and security ties between Armenia and Britain during talks with a
visiting senior British official on Wednesday.

Meeting with British Minister for Europe Geoff Hoon, Sarkisian
suggested that the two countries draw up "long-term programs of
military cooperation." A statement by the Armenian Defense Ministry
cited him as saying that such programs are needed for achieving
"tangible results" in the ongoing bilateral activities in the areas
of international peace-keeping, military training and defense reforms.

The statement said Hoon, who served as Britain’s defense secretary
from 1999-2005, welcomed the idea and expressed his readiness to help
to solve "problems arising during the deepening of [British-Armenian]
cooperation." It did not give further details, saying only that the
two men also discussed the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and
other challenges to regional security.

Hoon arrived in Yerevan on Tuesday and left it later on Wednesday as
part of his tour of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The low-key visit
involved no talks with President Robert Kocharian, with Hoon meeting
only with Sarkisian and Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian. The latter’s
press office did not immediately release any statements on the meeting.

Sarkisian’s calls for closer British-Armenian military ties came amid
Yerevan’s growing cooperation with NATO and the U.S. military in
particular under an "individual partnership action plan" which was
launched late last year. Sarkisian has repeatedly stated that that
cooperation is now an increasingly important elements of Armenia’s
national security doctrine that continues to be anchored in a military
alliance with Russia.