Armenia and India Work to Establish Direct Air Communication, Says Ambassador

Armenia and India are working on opening direct air communication between the two countries. This was announced by the Indian Ambassador to Armenia, Nilakshi Saha Sinha, during the Armenia-India forum.

The diplomat noted that launching direct flights between Yerevan and New Delhi is one of the priorities aimed at enhancing cooperation, and both governments are taking steps in this direction.

According to her, there is an opportunity to establish contacts that would promote cooperation in the fields of agriculture, food processing, education, and tourism.

“Armenia supports India in all international forums. Recently, there have been visits at the level of prime ministers and foreign ministers. We hope that these interactions will continue in the coming months and years,” the ambassador stated.

She highlighted the activation of bilateral ties, noting the defense sector where cooperation has taken a significant form.

The diplomat believes that both sides can also cooperate in the fields of IT and high technology. She pointed out the necessity for Indian investments in the development of Armenia’s infrastructure, recalling the agreement signed between the Investment Support Center and “Invest India” in 2021.

Addressing political dialogue, the diplomat reminded of the long-standing relationships between the peoples and noted that after the collapse of the USSR, India was the first country to recognize Armenia’s independence and opened its embassy in Yerevan in 1999.

In her opinion, India and Armenia are united by democratic values, common culture, traditions, and even similar ways of thinking.

Regarding the forum itself, she mentioned that B2B active meetings have been held over the past few days. “We expect data on the agreements reached between companies and organizations. Only through business contacts can we increase intergovernmental trade and achieve our goals,” Sinha said.

The Deputy Minister of Economy of Armenia, Arman Khojoyan, noted that trade turnover between the countries is modest at $180 million. However, both sides are taking steps to increase imports and exports.

Specifically, a diamond processing plant has already been opened in Armenia (the project investor will be the Indian jewelry concern KGK Group), and, according to the deputy minister, this will serve as a basis for further cooperation.

He believes that there are prospects for developing bilateral cooperation in agriculture and high technology.