Intellinews: Armenia marks new era with French military purchases

Armenia marks a new era with French military purchases, Neil Hauer, a Canadian journalist covering the Artsakh conflict, says in his new article for the Intellinews.

“After months of speculation and waiting, Armenia’s growing defense partnership with France finally became tangible this month,” Hauer writes, referring to reports emerged on November 12 that French-made Bastion armored personnel carriers are arriving in Armenia via Georgia.

“For Armenia, this was a significant milestone. After its army was battered in the 2020 Second Karabakh War, and with its traditional supplier, Russia, both unable and unwilling to send arms shipments, Yerevan has been desperately seeking other procurement partners. Now, having already established a working defense procurement relationship with India, Armenia is hoping that the current French shipment is only the first step of a long partnership,” the author writes.

Hauer notes that the arrival of the armored vehicles came after long negotiations.

“It’s a result of at least year-long negotiations, if not more,” Leonid Nersisyan, a defense analyst and research fellow at the Yerevan-based Applied Policy Research Institute, says in a conversation with Hauer.

“I think the process actively started after the 2020 war. Relations between France and Armenia were always at a pretty high level, and now with better Armenia-EU and Armenia-US relations, these kinds of deals became realistic,” Nersisyan adds.

According to Hauer, there are real fears that Azerbaijan will again attack Armenia.

“In this fraught environment, bolstering the country’s military has become a matter of crucial importance,” he notes.