On December 5, RA Defense Minister Suren Papikyan met US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

An official welcoming ceremony occurred in the Pentagon, and the national anthems of the Republic of Armenia and the United States were played.

Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan, thanking the US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin for his warm hospitality, presented details on the ongoing reforms in the RA Armed Forces and noted the primary directions of cooperation aimed at both the transformation of the RA Armed Forces and increasing the level of interoperability with the US Armed Forces. Military education, combat training, exercises in preparation for participation in international peacekeeping missions, development of professional sergeant and instruction institutes, RA building the training capacity of the armed forces, etc.

Welcoming Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikyan, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warmly noted that the head of the Armenian Defense Department's visit is historic.

Issues related to Armenia-US cooperation in defense were discussed during the meeting.

Lloyd Austin noted that the US supports the independence, sovereignty, and well-being of the Republic of Armenia and stressed that cooperation between the two countries continues to expand.

Secretary Austin expressed the willingness of the US to continue supporting the reforms of the RA Armed Forces.

Issues related to international and regional security were also discussed.

Defense Minister Suren Papikyan confirmed Armenia's desire to achieve long-term regional peace. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed US support for that goal.