On February 9-10, U.S. Vice President JD Vance paid an official, historic visit to Yerevan, making him the highest-ranking U.S. official ever to visit Armenia. One year ago, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was photographed with Vance in Washington on February 7, 2025, shortly after U.S. President Trump took office. At that time, Pashinyan’s political opponents dismissed the photo, arguing that it was merely a casual snapshot without any state flags. Speaking on Armenia’s Public Television after the U.S. Vice President’s departure on February 10, Pashinyan reflected on the circumstances of that meeting. “I remember what the White House was like at that time,” he said. “The old photographs had been taken down, but the new ones had not yet been hung. Furniture was being moved, and personal boxes were coming in and out, and we managed to arrange that meeting amid those boxes.”
In an hour-long interview, Nikol Pashinyan summarized the outcomes of JD Vance’s visit, outlining the agreements made and the topics discussed. He noted, “We did not speak about the border situation or regional tensions at all, which means that these issues are not currently on the agenda.”
After his visit to Yerevan, the U.S. vice president left for Baku.
“JD Vance is in Armenia because, as a result of the steps taken in recent years, significant new horizons have opened up for our country,” said Ruben Rubinyan in an interview with Petros Ghazaryan. He highlighted the documents signed in Washington on August 8, including the initialed peace agreement. He added, “We have transitioned from a situation where we were discussing when disaster might strike to one where we are debating which megaproject to implement first, and TRIPP is not the only one.”
On the same day, another Civil Contract MP, Maria Karapetyan, discussed Vance’s visit on Public TV. The day before, participants in the “Big Debate” talked about the visit
The lead story of the February 9 news broadcast focused on the statements and press conference by Vance and Pashinyan. It was reported that the two countries had signed a joint declaration on peaceful cooperation in nuclear energy. In the energy sector, Vance promised $9 billion in investments for Armenia, to be implemented in two phases: $5 billion and $4 billion. “American technologies will come to this country, many jobs will be created, there will be military cooperation, and the United States has approved the sale of $11 million worth of reconnaissance drone technology to Armenia,” the U.S. vice president said. He added that he was “proud to be the first U.S. vice president to visit Armenia and happy about it.” JD Vance also spoke about a peaceful future, noting: “The main question is how we take the establishment of peace to the next stage, how we arrive at a situation where the prime minister can focus on the future. The prime minister is the person who can ensure long-term cooperation.”
Public TV does not report on the protest organized on Baghramyan Avenue
However, Channel 5 thoroughly covered the protest, highlighting the security measures in place for the visit: at least 30 armored vehicles on the ground and a helicopter in the air. Protesters gathered outside the presidential residence, hoping to draw the vice president’s attention to the issue of Armenian detainees held in Azerbaijan through placards and public appeals. Unfortunately, the demonstrators were unable to meet with Vice President Vance.
Meanwhile, former Artsakh human rights defenders Artak Beglaryan and Gegham Stepanyan, along with imprisoned cleric Archbishop Bagrat, sent a letter to the U.S. vice president. In their letter, they called attention to the issues of Armenian prisoners of war, political detainees, and the return of displaced Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh.
About detainees
In response to a question from a Factor.am journalist about whether the issue of prisoners was discussed during the meeting with Vice President JD Vance, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan replied, “How do you imagine otherwise?” Confirmation that the matter of prisoners was addressed during discussions with the senior U.S. official came from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Public Television and from Vance himself at the airport before he departed from Armenia. However, Robert Amsterdam, an American lawyer representing Russian-Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetyan, said on Channel 5 that Pashinyan’s administration had not raised the issue of Armenian prisoners with sufficient urgency: “The prisoners’ release should have been the Armenian authorities’ top priority.” The following day, on February 11, media outlets reported that Amsterdam met with the Catholicos of All Armenians at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, where they discussed the imprisonment of bishops and Samvel Karapetyan.
JD Vance–Catholicos Karekin II Meeting Did Not Take Place
