Speaker 1 (00:49):
[foreign language 00:00:21]. JD Vance. Join statement on the completion of negotiation on agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation between the United States of America and the Republic of Armenia is being signed. From the Armenian side, the statement is being signed by his excellency, Mr. Nikol Pashinyan, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia. From the American side, the statement is being signed by the honorable JD Vance, Vice President of the United States. [foreign language 00:02:19]. A joint press statement will now take place.
Nikol Pashinyan (03:19):
Thank you to The United States of America. Mr. Donald Trump, and also to you for organizing the Washington Peace Summit on August 8th, 2025 through which we gave a strong to Armenia US bilateral relations. And with the personal involvement of President Trump, we established peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. After the Washington Peace Summit, President Aliyev and I nominated President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize through a joint letter. I have great hope that the President will rightfully receive this award in 2026, the Nobel Peace Prize. Vice President JD Vance's visit is a crucial step in institutionalizing peace and expanding the Armenian US strategic partnership. I presented to Mr. Vance the positive processes underway in the south caucuses, as well as the details of the discussions that took place a few days ago in Abu Dhabi between me and the president of Azerbaijan. The discussions were aimed at potential new steps for strengthening peace between our two countries.
(05:08)
On this occasion, I also reaffirmed Armenia's commitment to supporting the peace and peacekeeping mission of the US government, including the activities of the government. It's honor of signing on January 22 this year during the official ceremony in Davos. I would also like to note that I have received and gladly accepted President Trump's invitation to participate in the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace on February 19th. The Vice President and I have both underlined the importance of consistently implementing one of the most important achievements of the Washington Peace Summit, the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity Project in accordance with the framework for the implementation of the TRIPP Project signed on January 13 this year between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and the US Secretary of State. We reaffirmed that this project, in addition to the most serious peace dividends will also have regional and global significance developed unhindered communication between West and East. We expressed ourselves with proprietary works for the implementation of the project as well as progress of the feasibility studies that were launched a few days ago.
(06:49)
We also discussed with Mr. Vance, the prospects for complete deep lacking of the region as essential guarantees of stability and peace in the south caucuses. In this context, it is also of great importance to bring to its logical conclusion the ongoing dialogue in the Armenia Turkey normalization process, including the opening of the Gyumri-Kars railway. We jointly underscored also the significant achievements in bilateral relations, including in the fields of artificial intelligence and innovative technologies. I am pleased to note that the memorandum signs between Armenia and the United States on August 8 in the field of semiconductors and artificial intelligence [inaudible 00:07:36]. Firebird Building an artificial intelligence plant and data center in Armenia. In this regard, I should note that the recent approval of the issuance of export permits for the next batch of super powerful chips produced by NVIDIA for exportation to Armenia. I hope that the close and transparent corporation established between Armenia and the United States in the high-tech sector will allow us to further develop and strengthen a mutually beneficial partnership between Armenian and US companies.
(08:16)
In addition, we signed with Vice President Vance just a few minutes ago today, the joint statements on the completion of negotiations of the one to three agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation between the governments of Armenia and the United States. This agreement will open a new chapter in the deepening energy partnership between Armenia and the United States. It will contribute to the diversification of Armenia's energy resources by implementing safe and innovative technologies. I also expressed my gratitude for the longstanding support provided to Armenia by the United States in the field of nuclear security. Nuclear safety, and I expressed willingness to further develop sectoral cooperation in areas of creative [inaudible 00:09:12] for countries. We have also made significant progress in the fields of Armenia US military and defense partnership. In continuation of the bilateral longstanding security cooperation and the ego partnership military exercises ongoing for three consecutive years now, Armenia acquired from the United States V-BAT on land aerial vehicles, the effectiveness of which has been proven through extensive use experience and which will significantly contribute to strengthening our defense capabilities.
(09:49)
I expressed hope that this transaction implemented under the US's foreign military sales program will serve as a basis for expanding our future cooperation. We noted that Armenia and the United States are committed to developing a mutually beneficial partnership in securing the extraction and supply chains of critical minerals and railroads. Naturally, we also touched on institutional reforms in Armenia and the continuation of the longstanding support by the United States in this area, in particular, strengthening the straight structures of Armenia and developing their capacity. In relation to this, I highlighted the importance of support provided to Armenia for capacity development under the passwords of this program. We both emphasized that relations between Armenia and the United States are stronger today than ever, and we expressed our commitments to further develop them for the benefit of our peoples. Honorable Vice President, I would like to once again welcome you, your wife, the esteemed Usha Vance, and your beautiful family. I say to you, [foreign language 00:11:13] welcome to Armenia and express our gratitude for your commitment to further developing the strong ties between Armenia and the United States and for your personal contribution. Thank you.
JD Vance (11:28):
Well, thank you, Mr. Prime Minister. It's great to be here in Armenia, and I'm especially grateful that you described the second lady as the esteemed Usha Vance. You won me some brownie points there, though I think she's going to expect me to call her the esteemed Usha Vance in the future. So, you created expectations, too. This is a beautiful country, a country that the President of the United States is very proud to partner with, that the President of the United States is very proud to have a great relationship with. And I know that President Trump sends his best regards both to you personally, but also to the people of Armenia. And what President Trump and the Prime Minister have accomplished together is really visionary. Peace is not made by cautious people. Peace is not made by people who are too focused on the past, peace is made by people who are focused on the future.
(12:13)
And because the Prime Minister made such great progress and has had such a great relationship with both me and the President of the United States, we're not just making peace for Armenia, we're also creating real prosperity for Armenia and the United States together. So much of the great economic cooperation that we want to announce today would not have been possible without your leadership, without the peace that you committed your country to, and without, of course, the President of the United States' leadership. And so, I'm grateful for all of those things because I really do believe that tonight marks a new beginning for Armenia and the United States and the partnership that our country can have together. Now, I want to announce a few things, and the Prime Minister announced a few of them, but I want to reiterate what we've done here and what we're going to continue to work on together.
(13:00)
So first of all, he mentioned this incredible tech deal. The United States was proud to issue a number of export licenses for the sale of high-powered NVIDIA chips. Now, what does that mean? That means new markets for American workers and for American businesses, but it also means greater prosperity for the people of Armenia. These are chips that simply do not exist in most countries in the world. They are now going to be developed and the data centers using those chips are going to be built and in fact are already being built because of the Prime Minister's leadership and we're very happy to partner on that. It will mean great things for American workers and I think great things for the people of Armenia as well. We're also very proud to announce that our nations have completed negotiations on a one, two, three civil nuclear co-operation agreement.
(13:48)
Now, once that is completely stood up, it'll pave the way for American and Armenian companies to strike deals on civil nuclear projects. That means up to $5 billion in initial US exports plus an additional four billion in long-term support through fuel and maintenance contracts. This is the classic win-win for both Armenia and the United States of America. It means stronger energy security for my own country, and it also I think means stronger energy security for Armenia, and it's also going to create a lot of new jobs back home in the United States. It means small modular reactors. American technology is going to be coming to this country. And again, it's one of the few countries where we feel confident enough to invest at this level, to send this kind of technology, and it's happening because of the Prime Minister's leadership. I'm also very proud to talk about the TRIPP Enterprise Fund.
(14:43)
I think most of you here are familiar with Trip with a historic transformation that it's going to bring to the region, but let me say a couple of additional things. It is going to open up a whole new world of trade, transit, and energy flows in this region of the world, and it will create unprecedented connections between Armenia and its neighbors. Now, that is great for the prosperity of the people of Armenia, but it is also great for the enduring project of peace because when you create these interconnected economies, energy sectors and so forth, it means that this region can have an enduring peace. We don't just want to make peace with the Prime Minister and the President's leadership. We also want to make sure that that peace endures, and that is something that we are accomplishing here today. A couple of other things that I want to announce, there's a lot. This is a busy agenda here and we're very proud of it.
(15:38)
The TRIPP Fund, what it will do means that a lot of private capital is going to flow into building railroads, into building pipelines, and again, to building the interconnectedness that will create real prosperity for the region, but also allow the peace agreement to stick. I also was very happy with the Prime Minister just a couple of minutes ago to see some of the new drone technology that we will be selling to Armenia. President Trump knows very well, the very best way to ensure that you have peace is to establish real deterrence, and the best way to establish real deterrence is with the best military technology in the world, and the United States has that. And for the first time, we are announcing a major sale of military technology, $11 million in surveillance drone technology to the Armenians and to our good friend, the Prime Minister.
(16:29)
He's going to use that to secure his country and to make sure that the peace that we're creating sticks, that means for the United States, more jobs and more investment in our own defense technology sector. So let me just close here by saying that what's happening here today is truly historic. I am proud to be the first Vice President of the United States to visit this beautiful country. I'm very excited to get to see a little bit of it tomorrow. I'm very excited about the dinner that we're going to have. And I know that I'm the last thing standing between that dinner, so I'll try to speak very fast here over the closing couple of minutes, but this is one of the oldest Christian countries in the entire world, a true bedrock of Christian civilization and culture. As a devout Christian myself, I know the meaning of this country to the entire world and to the religion that the Prime Minister and I share.
(17:20)
So to the people of Armenia and the Great Prime Minister, I want to thank you for your partnership. President Trump is committed to this partnership and so am I, and we're thrilled to be here to take the next step. God bless you. And I know now we'll take a couple of questions. Maybe Prime Minister, you can start.
Speaker 1 (17:39):
[foreign language 00:17:38]. Honorable Prime Minister, Honorable Vice President. To your attendees, we now open the floor for questions. Two questions from each side. Your Excellency's guest, now we will open the floor for the questions, two questions from the representative of United States Medias and two from Armenia. And a first question from our colleagues from United States. [foreign language 00:18:00].
Speaker 6 (18:08):
Mr. Prime Minister, can you let us know if in your conversations you discussed Iran and the situation in the region and what the goals and objectives would be of the United States and Armenia given the recent diplomatic efforts?
Nikol Pashinyan (18:40):
Armenia and the US share a common objective in our cooperation, and that objective is peace and stability. All our engagements, all our activities with the US are aimed at peace and stability. And I am confident that this is an achievable goal. We have seen, we are seeing now, and I had the opportunity of saying this in my opening speech, the bilateral meaning that it's very important to me that the peace that was declared on August 8, 2025 is now happening in reality on the ground. It is taking shape. And allow me to say that the cooperation between Armenia and the United States is a cooperation that brings peace and so it will be always. Thank you. Next question.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
[foreign language 00:19:36]. Next question from Armenia side.
Speaker 11 (19:42):
Mr. Vice President, my question is for you. Mr. Vice President, although you did refer to the TRIPP Project in your speech, but I would like to ask you for some details. How would you assess current progress? How much investment is expected or planned to be made by the US in the project and what economic benefits do you expect of this project? Thank you.
JD Vance (20:07):
Well, in terms of the amount of investment, we've talked to a number of partners in the region, but also across the world who are very interested in it. They think that it's a very fertile investment opportunity. We actually spent a fair amount of time talking today about how we could make things go faster. I think the prime minister wants things to go as fast as possible because again, this interconnectedness, this economic development is good for prosperity, but it's also good for peace. The United States is certainly going to play a very positive and constructive role in this, but I don't think that money is the issue. I think there's actually a lot of capital interest in this particular project. There are a lot of people across the world who think that they can make a good return on investment by investing in Armenia and investing in this TRIPP Project.
(20:47)
I think the question is really, how do we get the peace deal into a good next phase? How do we keep the Prime Minister in a good place where he can start to focus on the future? I know he has an election coming up. I won't talk about that, but to the extent my endorsement means anything, he certainly has it because this is a guy who can build the long-term partnership to make this kind of a thing stick. This has not happened overnight, but I think we've already made great progress in just the months since August 8th.
Speaker 1 (21:21):
[foreign language 00:21:20]. Thank you. The next question. Next question is from the colleagues from United States.
Speaker 12 (21:25):
Thank you. Mr. Vice President, on the Iran negotiations, would the US allow limited uranium enrichment or is no enrichment whatsoever red line in negotiations?
JD Vance (21:35):
Well, I think the President's going to make the ultimate determination about where we draw the red lines and the negotiations. If you go back to the original negotiation that happened between us and the Iranians, the President was trying very, very hard to actually strike a constructive deal that would have been good for the United States, but frankly, the entire administration agreed if the Iranians were smart enough to have made that agreement, then it would have been good for them, too. We're obviously much more focused tonight on the issues related to US Armenia cooperation, but I'll let the President speak to exactly where he wants to set the lines of negotiation. As you guys know, he typically does that privately. He doesn't announce what he's going to do in a negotiation because he thinks that it constrains him in private. He's going to have, I think, a lot of good conversations with his team and with others in the days and weeks to come.
(22:22)
I'll let the President set the terms of those negotiations, but with all due respect to our friends in the media, I think the President is going to preserve decisional space for himself, and that means not revealing too many of his cards publicly.
Speaker 12 (22:34):
I have one more follow up on the Iran negotiations.
JD Vance (22:36):
Go ahead.
Speaker 12 (22:37):
Has the violent crackdown of protesters in Iran been part of those negotiations? Does the US want to push for any kind of human rights assurances to be part of a deal?
JD Vance (22:46):
Well, I think as the President has said publicly, it's already very much been part of the negotiations that we've had. It's one of the things the President made a very strong demand is that there were prisoners who were going to be executed. The crackdown was, of course, very brutal and violent. And as the President and the entire administration has said, we stand with the people of Iran. We stand with the right of peaceful protest across the world and certainly people who want to exercise that right in Iran, but absolutely the President has made that part of the conversations that he's had, not just with the Iranians, but with people all across the region. I'm sure that will continue.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
[foreign language 00:23:19] And another question from Armenia side.
Speaker 13 (23:24):
Thank you. Armen Press News Agency, [foreign language 00:23:28]. Mr. Prime Minister, you said in your statement after the documents signed on August 8th up to now, how much work has been done, and you also generally explained the areas in which we should have expectations in the future. Generally, could you please assess the current level of Armenia US relations, the current progress of activities, and in the near future, what specifically should we expect?
Nikol Pashinyan (23:52):
Well, I think this site underlines the level of current relations between Armenia and the US. Our current level of relations is higher than ever, but it's important as we underscored with the Vice President, the great potential for further developing our relations. Indeed, we are at the highest point today. The agenda that we refer to in our statements, just implementing that agenda would multiply the scope of our cooperation. This is very important. We have established a strategic partnership, but it's important to note we are now able to demonstrate concrete manifestations of that strategic partnership, which are tangible, which are visible. And of course, a special appreciation goes to United States President Donald Trump for his personal engagement, but also a few times today, I have already thanked and thank Vice President J.D. Vance for his personal engagement because we know on February 7th, 2025, the meeting at the White House and the very meaningful discussion and the conversation we had back then was pivotal for the subsequent events.
(25:22)
And I expressed special gratitude to the Vice President because during those days when we were having that meeting, how can I put this correctly? The White House was still transforming. I might even say the Vice President hadn't moved in fully to that work environment, and I very highly appreciate that under those circumstances, he considered that to be an important conversation. So calmly, quietly, for quite a long time, we thoroughly discussed the opportunities and the agenda that could reach us to today's point. And it was worthy of particular appreciation in that environment. And when I got back to Yerevan, the impulses that the Vice President of the United States had given instructions appropriately. They had reached, these imposes had reached the Yerevan before I reached Yerevan. It is a sign of a particular manifestation of responsibility and professionalism, for which of course I expressed my words of appreciation and my token of respect to the Vice President.
Speaker 1 (26:31):
Thank you for the questions, excellencies. Thank you for the responses. Thank you for your questions, and thank you, your excellencies.
JD Vance (26:38):
Thank you. Goodnight, everyone.
Speaker 6 (26:41):
Mr. Vice President, to be clear on Iran, are military strikes still on the table? Mr. Vice President?