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Abbas Ganbay

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India is considering supplying a new batch of military equipment to Armenia, after the successful delivery of the first batch of weapons over the past year, according to the Economic Times, Azernews reports.

A senior Armenian official visited Delhi recently and held discussions in this regard, said people with knowledge of the matter. India has emerged as a reliable weapons supplier as per Armenia's requirements, they said.

The last consignment sent by India to Armenia included Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launchers, anti-tank missiles, rockets, and ammunition. The supply of weapons was reportedly made through Iran, which shares historical ties with Armenia. Earlier this year, India, Iran, and Armenia had formed a trilateral to explore the transport corridor.

During a meeting in Yerevan in April, the three sides discussed economic projects and regional communication channels and outlined the prospects of deepening cultural and people-to-people contacts as well as trilateral cooperation in various fields. They had then decided to "continue consultations" in the format. The trilateral meeting also discussed the use of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) as a regional connectivity initiative.

New weapons brought to Armenia are currently being tested by the Armenian military and the results are "very satisfactory", according to the chairman of Armenia's Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security Affairs, Andranik Kocharyan. Details of the fresh supplies are not known yet, but analysts in Armenia who want to remain anonymous stated that the cargo might comprise tools that could act as a deterrent amid the hostile environment with Azerbaijan.

India has been making significant efforts to increase weapons exports, with policy reforms and active support of the government to secure overseas orders. The government-to-government route was used to sign a number of contracts for the supply of arms and ammunition to Armenia earlier this month. While the value of the contracts has not been revealed, it is estimated that weapons worth over Rs 2,000 crore (about $250 million) will be supplied to the country over the coming months.

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