French-Armenian relations are already “very largely strategic,” Barrot said after talks with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan. He gave concrete examples of that, including bilateral military cooperation.
“Together with my colleague Ararat, we are going to put all this to paper, preparing a document on strategic partnership which will further formalize the existing relations, and also mapping out other programs, including in the area of defense, for the years and decades to come,” he told a joint news conference.
Mirzoyan confirmed plans for such an accord. But he too did not go into its details.
“My visit today is an occasion to underline France’s support for Armenia, for its future and its place and integration in the region,” Barrot told Mirzoyan at the start of their talks.
The top Armenian and French diplomats spoke at an international security forum in the Armenian capital later in the day.
France, which is home to an influential Armenian community, has emerged in recent years as Armenia’s leading Western backer and supplier of weapons. It regularly voices support for Armenia in the conflict with Azerbaijan. Baku has repeatedly condemned this stance as well as French-Armenian defense contracts signed since 2023.
Russia has also voiced concerns over those contracts. Visting Yerevan last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that while Yerevan is free to buy weapons from any foreign supplier it should bear in mind that France currently leads the anti-Russian “enemy camp” in the West.
Armenian leaders say these and other arms acquisitions are designed to counter a continuing Azerbaijani military buildup. They argue that oil-rich Azerbaijan’ defense budget is more than twice bigger than Armenia’s.