Monday, May 30 2022 15:05

ArmInfo.Good contacts have been established between the ministries of defense of Armenia and India, and military-technical cooperation has been developing between them gradually. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan stated this in  an interview with the Indian WION to clarify what can be expected  from the Armenian-Indian defense relations.

In this vein, he recalled that Armenia participated in a number of  exhibitions in India. " Our defence ministries have established good  contacts and military-technical cooperation has been developing  between them gradually. Armenia has participated in several defence  expositions in India. It is without a doubt that in recent years  India has made rapid advances in defence technologies and industry  which is of course very interesting for the Armenian defence sector.   I believe our specialists should explore the opportunities for  further cooperation," he said.

When asked to assess the current level of relations between Armenia  and India, Mirzoyan recalled: " This year marks the 30th anniversary  of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and  India. Although our state-to-state relations are only 30 years old,  it is well known that Armenian and Indian peoples have a  centuries-old rich history of close interaction that has developed  into mutual sympathy and friendly relations.

The Armenians have had a strong presence in Agra, Surat, Chennai,  Kolkata and other commercial centres since the 16th century. They  have thrived here in the initial era of globalisation and now our  heritage in India coming from that era is preserved with care, which  we highly appreciate.

It should be mentioned also that we have a strong community of Indian  students and businessmen studying and working in Armenia. The Embassy  of India and the Indian Cultural Center in Armenia are doing a great  job to bring our countries, peoples, and businesses closer so that  our citizens could further benefit from the development of our ties.

Our countries have tremendous potential in promoting cooperation in  areas of mutual interest, particularly underlining the spheres of  high technology, transportation, food production, healthcare,  pharmaceutical industry, tourism, culture and defence.  Last but not  the least, our countries have quite close interests regarding  regional and international issues. We highly appreciate India's  continuous support towards the peaceful settlement of the  Nagorno-Karabakh conflict within the framework of the OSCE Minsk  Group Co-Chairmanship.

In general, Armenia values the balanced and stabilizing position of  India in these times of global turmoil. India is an important pillar  of global and regional stability and a major power that rightly  aspires for more role in international affairs and is perceived by  many as a force for good.

Having all these factors in mind, the Government of Armenia considers  further strengthening of cooperation with India, the world's largest  democracy, as one of its strategic priorities," Armenian Foreign  Minister said.

When asked to tell about the main purpose of the visit to India,  Mirzoyan noted, in part: "Our meeting with Minister Subrahmanyam  Jaishankar in Dushanbe last year gave a new impetus to our bilateral  relations. Following it, Minister Jaishankar paid a landmark visit to  Armenia last fall, and a roadmap of wider engagement ranging from  political dialogue to solid multidimensional collaboration was  elaborated during that visit. Since then, concrete steps have been  undertaken in regard of the implementation of the road map.   Accepting the invitation to participate in the "Raisina Dialogue"  forum, which by the way has received special, global attention this  year, gave a good opportunity to continue our dialogue and together  with Minister Jaishankar evaluate the work already done and outline  new ambitious milestones.

Additionally, during this visit special emphasis was made on the  promotion of economic cooperation between our countries, given the  fact that our delegation was accompanied by representatives from  leading Armenian businesses. We participated in the Armenian- Indian  business forums in New Delhi and Mumbai. Such events and continuous  B2B contacts will bring our business circles closer to each other.

Now the next step will be the session of the Armenian-Indian  Intergovernmental Commission which we are going to host in Armenia  this summer. As one can notice this is quite an impressive dynamic,"  Mirzoyan concluded.