DAMASCUS–(Reuters)–Syria and Armenia’signed a military cooperation agreement on Monday–a Syrian Defense Ministry official said.
The agreement was signed by Syrian Defense Minister General Mustafa Tlas and visiting Armenian Defense Minister Serge Sarkisian. The official gave no details about the deal.
"Talks during the meeting that was attended by General Ali Aslan–chief of staff of the Syrian armed forces–dealt with bilateral relations between the armies of both friendly countries and ways of promoting them," the official said.
Armenia is one of the states established following the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union which was the main arms supplier to Syria.
Accepting the official invitation of Lebanese defense minister Khalil Herawi–Sarkisian will visit Lebanon on Tuesday. During the visit Sarkisian will meet several Lebanese government officials and will sign inter-governmental treaties.
Sarkisian will arrive in Lebanon on Tuesday morning and will visit Aynjar–after which a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart in scheduled. He is also due to meet with the Commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces General Michel Slayman–the President of Lebanon General Emile Lahoud–Parliament Speaker Nebih Berri and Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.
That same evening–Sarkisian will visit the monument dedicated to Armenia’s who died during the Lebanese civil war–located in Bourdj Hammoud.
On Wednesday–Sarkisian will meet with the Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia–the Armenian Catholic Patriarch–as well as the leader of the Armenian Evangelical Church.