Armenia's Defense Minister Suren Papikyan (left) meets with his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoigu in Moscow on Feb. 24

Armenia’s Defense Minister Suren Papikyan, on his first trip to Moscow in his role as minister, met with his Russian counterpart Serigey Shoigu on Friday and discussed issues related to the defense cooperation between the two countries.

Papikyan, who became defense minister in November, visited Moscow two days after President Vladimir Putin of Russia ordered military operations in Ukraine. No mention of that conflict was made in official press statements.

According to Armenia’s defense ministry, Shoigu and Paplikian discussed international and regional security issues. A number of issues related to bilateral and multilateral military cooperation between Armenia and Russia were also discussed.

“The parties praised the dynamics of the Armenian-Russian allied cooperation and the political dialogue, the role and efforts of the Russian Federation aimed at stabilizing the military-political situation in the region, as well as the effectiveness of the Russian peacekeeping mission in Artsakh,” said the defense ministry press statement.

During the discussions, reference was made to the modernization of the Armenian Armed Forces and the process of reforms.

In August, during a meeting with Papikyan’s predecessor, Shoigu pledged Russia’s readiness to assist Armenia in modernizing its armed forces. This angered Aliyev who protested Moscow’s posturing on Armenia’s military capabilities. In the end, Moscow said that it was Russia’s right as a sovereign nation to develop military cooperation with Armenia.