The Armenian defence ministry said the Eagle Partner 2023 drills aim to "increase the level of interoperability" between Armenian and US forces in international peacekeeping missions.

They will be held on September 11-20 in Armenia's Zar training centre.

The Kremlin responded saying the announcement "raises concerns" and vowed to "thoroughly analyse" the exercises.

Russia and Armenia are at odds over a 2,000-strong Russian peacekeeping contingent responsible for the Lachin corridor, which connects Armenia to the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

They have been deployed there since 2020 when Russia brokered a ceasefire to end a war between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the mountainous territory.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recently said Moscow was either "unable or unwilling" to control the corridor.

His government says Azerbaijan has closed the road and blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh spurring a humanitarian crisis in Armenian-populated towns.

Marking a major foreign policy shift, Pashinyan also said that Yerevan's longstanding reliance on Russia as its security guarantor was a "strategic mistake."

His wife was on Wednesday in Kyiv to attend a meeting of first ladies and gentlemen and deliver humanitarian aid for the first time since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Russia has a permanent military base in Armenia which is part of the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation.

The Kremlin said this week that Russia was fulfilling its obligations to Armenia, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying Russia "is not going anywhere".

Tensions between Baku and Yerevan have escalated sharply in recent months, as both sides accuse the other of cross-border attacks.

The two sides have been unable to reach a lasting peace settlement despite mediation efforts by the European Union, United States and Russia.

https://www.barrons.com/news/armenia-us-peacekeeping-forces-to-hold-joint-drills-yerevan-8426d982