France says will help Armenia identify blind spots in air defense

PanARMENIAN.Net - France will help Armenia audit its air defense to identify blind spots, French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu told his Armenian counterpart Suren Papikyan at a press conference on Monday, October 23.

Lecornu said that in the coming months, the French government will send a French military official to act as a defense consultant for the Armenian executive branch on issues such as armed forces training, Lecornu said.

France will also train Armenian soldiers, he added, according to Politico.

Prior to the press conference, Armenia signed a contract to buy three Ground Master 200 radars manufactured by Thales — the same as delivered to Ukraine to fend off Russia's aggression — and another one with Safran for equipment including binoculars and sensors. Armenia and France also signed a letter of intent to kick off a process to purchase Mistral air defense systems made by MBDA.

Paris started stepping up defense cooperation with Yerevan in September last year, but Azerbaijan's offensive has accelerated France's willingness to deepen military ties. Last month, France dispatched a military attaché to the French embassy in the Armenian capital.