Armenia not going to open a new foreign military base on the country’s territory

Armenia is not going to open new foreign military bases on its territory, not even Russian ones – Vigen Sargsyan, the Armenian Defense Minister, told a Russian media outlet.

“The issue of opening new foreign military bases in Armenia is not on the agenda. The Russian side hasn’t requested it either,” said Vigen Sargsyan.

In fact, he denied speculations by Russian expert and political circles about the possible deployment of a second Russian military base in Armenia. The need for the aforesaid was explained as follows: one military base can’t meet the actual needs of the two countries. Apart from that, two military bases will curb possible military encroachments on part of Turkey and the USA, which can’t be excluded, especially when considering the relationship these countries’ have with Russia.

Defense Minister Sargsyan also pointed out that the 102nd Russian military base in the Armenian town of Gyumri, which is actually the only Russian military base in the post-soviet space, could be modernized.

“There are particular themes and trends on which new forms of cooperation can be built as a result of joint work. Russia greatly contributes to strengthening of the Armenian Armed Forces. We have numerous joint programs with Russia, be it cadet training courses or joint planning of operations,” he added.