The State Department said Wednesday that an upcoming high-level meeting in Brussels between Yerevan, the United States and the European Union will “purely” focus on issues dealing with Armenia.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on April 5. Baku has voiced concern about the meeting and has accused the U.S. and the European Union of sowing divisions in the region.
Armenia’s foreign ministry on Wednesday echoed the State Department, explaining that the meeting “will be dedicated to strengthening cooperation between Armenia, the EU, and the US. It is not and could not be directed against any third party.”
“While in Brussels, Secretary Blinken and USAID Administrator [Samantha] Power will also join a U.S.-EU trilateral meeting with Armenia, together with European Commission President von der Leyen and Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan, regarding U.S. and EU support for Armenia’s economic resilience as it works to diversify its trade partnerships and address humanitarian needs,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Wednesday at a briefing.
Miller went on to explain that the meeting will be a “purely Armenia [meeting], not Azerbaijan.”
The spokesperson did not rule out that issues related to the Armenia-Azerbaijan process may be discussed, but emphasized that the focus of the talks will be “partnership” with Armenia.
“I suppose it’s always possible it could come up on the margins of the meeting, in that type of conversation, but that’s not the focus of the meeting. The meeting in Brussels is to focus on Armenia’s economic resilience as it works to diversify its trade partnerships and address humanitarian needs,” Miller said.
