In the context of Section 3, Paragraph 3 of the Charter on Strategic Partnership between Armenia and the US, Armenia cooperates with the US through the US Department of State’s Export Control and Related Border Security Program to develop the capabilities of Armenia’s National Security Service border guards and the State Revenue Committee. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Armenia responded in this way to Factor.am’s written inquiry as to whether a US customs and border patrol team has visited Armenia, as was announced by former US Secretary of State Antony Blinken back in January.

According to the Armenian MFA response, the ongoing cooperation includes both training of Armenian specialists and technical assistance. The ministry stated that within the framework of this cooperation, both the program coordinator’s visits to Armenia and visits of Armenian officials to the US take place on a regular basis.

In January, the heads of the Armenian and US foreign ministries had signed a charter on a strategic partnership in Washington.

Then-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had announced that a US customs and border patrol team would travel to Armenia in the coming weeks to work with Armenian colleagues on border security capacity development.

To date, however, neither the American nor the Armenian side has released any official statement about such a visit by the US customs and border patrol team to Armenia.