• Highlights Growing Military and Strategic Cooperation with India
  • India Emerges as Reliable Defence Partner for Armenia
  • Armenia Sees New Opportunities in Defence Innovation and Technology Collaboration with India

By Sangeeta Saxena

New Delhi. 16 May 2026.  Armenia has steadily emerged as an important partner in India’s evolving foreign and defence policy, particularly within the context of strategic connectivity, regional stability and defence cooperation in Eurasia and the South Caucasus. In recent years, bilateral relations have witnessed significant momentum through high-level political and military engagements, including meetings between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Armenian leadership, interactions between External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and his Armenian counterparts, as well as defence exchanges involving Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan and senior Armenian military officials. These engagements reflect a growing convergence between the two countries on issues related to multi-polarity, security cooperation, defence modernisation and strategic autonomy.

Highlighting the rapidly expanding strategic and defence cooperation between India and Armenia, Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to India, His Excellency Vahagn Afyan, delivered a special address at Kalam & Kavach 3.0, emphasising the growing convergence between the two nations in security, defence technology and geopolitical cooperation. Addressing military leaders, diplomats, strategic experts and industry representatives, Ambassador Afyan described the India-Armenia relationship as a partnership built on mutual respect, civilisational ties and increasing strategic trust.

The Ambassador noted that what was once a traditionally friendly relationship has evolved into a “dynamic and multidimensional partnership” driven by shared interests in regional stability, defence collaboration and a multipolar global order. With defence cooperation emerging as one of the most important pillars of bilateral engagement, he highlighted recent high-level military exchanges, institutional defence dialogues and expanding opportunities for collaboration in emerging domains such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and unmanned systems.

Beginning his address, Ambassador Vahagn Afyan reflected on the deep historical and civilisational links between India and Armenia“India and Armenia share a relationship built on mutual respect, civilisation connection and growing strategic cooperation,” he said, referring to the long-standing Armenian communities in Kolkata and Chennai and the publication of the first Armenian journal in Madras. However, the Ambassador stressed that the relationship today is increasingly focused on the future rather than only historical connections.“Today, I would like to focus not on history alone, but on the future we are actively building together, particularly in the field of defence and security cooperation,” he remarked.

According to Ambassador Afyan, Armenia-India relations have undergone a significant transformation in recent years. “What was once a traditionally friendly relationship has now evolved into a dynamic and multidimensional partnership increasingly characterised by strategic convergence and mutual trust,” he stated. The Ambassador noted that this transformation is driven by shared strategic objectives and common geopolitical interests.“It is a common goal and a common vision for a stable and secure multipolar world,” he said.

Defence cooperation, he emphasised, has become one of the strongest pillars of bilateral relations.“Defence cooperation has emerged as one of the most significant pillars of our bilateral relationship,” Ambassador Afyan observed.

He highlighted the importance of recent high-level visits and military exchanges in strengthening institutional ties between the two countries. “The visits of Armenia’s Defence Minister to India and the reciprocal engagements by senior Indian defence leadership, including the visit of General Anil Chauhan to Armenia, created a strong foundation for institutional dialogue,” he said.

Referring to the recent visit of Lieutenant General Edward Asryan, Chief of the General Staff of Armenia’s Armed Forces, to India, Ambassador Afyan described it as another important milestone in bilateral defence cooperation. “Productive meetings were held with senior Indian defence leadership, including the Chief of Defence Staff and other key officials,” he noted. “The discussions focused on strengthening military-to-military ties, expanding cooperation in training and education and exploring new avenues for defence collaboration.”

The Ambassador further highlighted the institutionalisation of defence cooperation through formal frameworks and consultations.“The establishment of regular defence consultations and the Joint Working Group on Defence Cooperation reflects our shared intent to move beyond symbolic engagement towards structured and long-term collaboration,” he said.

A key focus of his address was the recently signed 2026 Defence Cooperation Programme between the two countries.“The signing of the 2026 Defence Cooperation Programme marks an important milestone,” he said. “It outlines practical steps in areas such as military education and training, planned joint exercises, defence technology cooperation and knowledge exchange.”

The Ambassador emphasised that the relationship goes beyond conventional defence ties and reflects deeper strategic alignment.“This is not merely cooperation,” he remarked. “It is capacity building, interoperability and strategic alignment.” On military-technical cooperation, Ambassador Afyan described India as a dependable defence partner for Armenia.

“India has emerged as a reliable partner for Armenia in the defence sector,” he stated. “Our collaboration is guided by transparency, mutual benefit and a shared commitment to strengthening defensive capabilities.”He also pointed to Armenia’s growing high-tech ecosystem and its potential synergy with India’s industrial scale and technological strengths. “Armenia brings its own strengths to the table, particularly in innovation, agility and a growing high-tech defence ecosystem,” he said. “This creates a natural synergy with India’s scale and industrial capacity.”

The Ambassador highlighted emerging areas where the two countries could collaborate in the future. “Together, we can explore joint development, co-production and technology partnerships, especially in artificial intelligence in defence, unmanned systems, cybersecurity and electronic warfare,” he said. He also noted the increasing depth of strategic and security dialogue between the two governments.

“The regular interactions between the Armenian Security Council and India’s national security establishment demonstrate the depth of trust between our two countries,” Ambassador Afyan observed.According to him, these discussions increasingly cover broader regional and global security challenges.“These discussions cover not only bilateral issues, but also regional and global security challenges, including counterterrorism, hybrid threats and the evolving nature of modern warfare,” he stated.

One of the strongest messages from his address was the assertion that India and Armenia are already functioning as strategic partners in practice. “While Armenia and India may not formally label their relationship as a strategic partnership, the substance of our cooperation increasingly reflects one,” he said.He described the partnership as pragmatic, forward-looking and rooted in long-term interests.“This partnership is pragmatic, forward-looking and rooted in long-term mutual interests,” he remarked.

Looking ahead, Ambassador Afyan outlined future opportunities for deeper cooperation.“We see opportunities to deepen defence-industrial collaboration, enhance joint research and innovation, expand training and academic exchanges and strengthen coordination in multilateral forums,” he said.

Concluding his address, the Ambassador reaffirmed Armenia’s commitment to strengthening ties with India.“As Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has noted, our centuries-old friendship has now reached a qualitatively new level,” he said. “Together we are not only strengthening bilateral relations, we are contributing to a more stable, secure and cooperative international environment.”

Ambassador Vahagn Afyan’s address at Kalam & Kavach 3.0 reflected the remarkable evolution of India-Armenia relations from historic civilisational connections to a modern strategic partnership grounded in defence cooperation, technological collaboration and geopolitical convergence. By highlighting expanding military exchanges, institutional defence dialogue and cooperation in emerging domains such as AI, cybersecurity and unmanned systems, the Ambassador underscored the growing strategic depth of bilateral ties.

His remarks also reinforced the broader importance of trusted partnerships in an increasingly uncertain and multipolar global environment. With both countries seeking stronger defence capabilities, technological resilience and regional stability, the India-Armenia partnership is gradually emerging as a model of pragmatic and future-oriented cooperation. As India expands its role as a major strategic and defence power and Armenia strengthens its regional security partnerships, the relationship appears poised to enter a new phase marked by deeper industrial collaboration, innovation-led engagement and long-term strategic alignment.

The address by Ambassador Vahagn Afyan reflected how India-Armenia relations have evolved from centuries-old civilisational and cultural interactions into a modern and increasingly strategic partnership rooted in trust, shared values and common geopolitical interests. Historical links between the two countries — visible through Armenian communities in India, cultural exchanges and early intellectual connections dating back to Madras and Kolkata — have today expanded into deeper engagement across defence, security, technology and diplomacy. In the current geopolitical environment, both nations are strengthening cooperation through military dialogue, defence-industrial collaboration, strategic consultations and emerging technology partnerships, reflecting growing convergence on issues of regional stability and multipolarity. Looking ahead, with expanding collaboration in defence manufacturing, AI, cybersecurity, unmanned systems, training and innovation, the India-Armenia partnership appears poised for significant growth in the coming years. Ambassador Afyan’s remarks at Kalam & Kavach 3.0 underscored that the relationship is no longer limited to historical goodwill alone, but is steadily transforming into a forward-looking strategic partnership capable of contributing to regional security, technological cooperation and a more stable international order.