The dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 brought an end to the Cold War and created an opportunity for establishing bilateral relations between the United States with Armenia and other post-Soviet states as they began a political and economic transformation. The United States recognized the independence of Armenia on 25 December 1991, and established an embassy in Armenia's capital Yerevan in February 1992. Diplomatic relations between the two nations started on 7 January 1992.
The United States has made a concerted effort to help Armenia and other NIS during their transition from authoritarianism and a planned economy to democracy and a market economy. The Freedom for Russia and Emerging Eurasian Democracies and Open Markets (FREEDOM) Support Act was enacted in October 1992. Under this and other programs, the United States to date has provided humanitarian and technical assistance for Armenia.
History
The United States recognized the independence of the Armenian Republic on 23 April 1920, when Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby delivered a note to the Representative of the Armenian Republic in Washington, informing him of President Woodrow Wilson’s decision. The note specified that this recognition "in no way predetermines the territorial frontiers, which are matters for later delimitation".
The territory expected to compose the independent Armenian Republic previously had been under the sovereignty of the Ottoman and Russian Empires. At the request of the Paris Peace Conference’s Supreme Council of the Allied Powers, President Wilson arbitrated the boundary to be set between Armenia and Turkey and submitted his determinations to the Supreme Council on 22 November 1920. Prior to Wilson’s decisions, however, the territory expected to compose the Armenian Republic had been attacked by Turkish and Bolshevik troops. By the end of 1920 the Armenian Republic had ceased to exist as an independent state, with its territory either seized by Turkey or established as the Armenian Soviet Republic, which subsequently joined the Soviet Union.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 brought an end to the Cold War and created an opportunity for establishing bilateral relations between the United States with Armenia and other post-Soviet states as they began a political and economic transformation. The United States recognized the independence of Armenia on 25 December 1991, and opened an embassy in Armenia's capital Yerevan in February 1992.
The United States has made a concerted effort to help Armenia and other NIS during their difficult transition from authoritarianism and a planned economy to democracy and a market economy. The cornerstone of this continuing partnership has been the Freedom for Russia and Emerging Eurasian Democracies and Open Markets (FREEDOM) Support Act, enacted in October 1992. Under this and other programs, the United States to date has provided nearly $2 billion in humanitarian and technical assistance for Armenia.
On 27 March 2006, Armenia signed a Millennium Challenge Compact with the United States; the agreement entered into force on 29 September 2006. Provided the Armenian Government makes progress on mutually agreed-upon policy performance criteria (corruption, ruling justly, and investing in people), the agreement will provide $235 million to Armenia over five years to reduce rural poverty through the improvement of rural roads and irrigation networks. In 2013, the United States and Armenia held their first-ever joint military drills, during which Armenian soldiers were trained for their current multi-national peacekeeping operations.
According to the 2016 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 42% of Armenians approve of U.S. leadership, with 31% disapproving and 27% uncertain.U.S. Global Leadership Project Report – 2016 Gallup
On 24 April 2021, on the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, US President Joe Biden referred to the Armenian genocide as "genocide" in a statement released by the White House.
On 10 June 2024, US and Armenian diplomats met in Yerevan and pledged to increase bilateral ties. "The sides positively assessed cooperation to support Armenia's ongoing reforms and democratic progress and noted Armenia's aspirations for closer cooperation with Euro-Atlantic institutions and the West," a joint statement said. The two sides announced that they would deepen ties in the coming year, which will be formalized by signing a deal to upgrade the status of bilateral dialogue to a "Strategic Partnership Commission". This comes as trade turnover between Washington and Yerevan has quadrupled since 2020. Military officials also vowed to establish formal bilateral defense consultations to "regularize planning of defense cooperation objectives." On 14 January 2025, Armenia and the United States signed the Armenia–United States Strategic Partnership Charter. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, along with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, signed a peace agreement with US President Donald Trump in the White House on 8 August 2025, ending an over 35-year conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
On 9 February 2026, U.S. Vice President JD Vance visited Armenia and met with Prime Minister Pashinyan, becoming the highest-ranking U.S. official to do so; they discussed the Armenia–Azerbaijan peace agreement and a civil nuclear energy deal. The White House has proposed to build a road and rail corridor through Armenia — which might be lucrative for the U.S. as well —connecting two parts of Azerbaijan.state.gov: The TRIPP Implementation Framework (TIF) (TRIPP stands for Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity.
A parliamentary election will take place on 7 June 2026.
Trade relations
Following Armenia's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States established diplomatic relations with the country. Since then, the US has supported Armenia in many of its endeavours such as encouraging a peaceful resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, reopening the closed borders with Azerbaijan and Turkey, and promoting regional prosperity. The US has many trade agreements with Armenia such as the trade and investment framework agreement (TIFA), and an agreement on trade relations, and a bilateral investment treaty (BAT). The U.S. and Armenia frequently convene over the U.S.-Armenia joint economic task force (USATF) to discuss mutual economic and governmental concerns.
United States–Armenia economic relations In 1992, Armenia signed three agreements with the United States affecting trade between the two countries. The agreements were ratified by the Armenian parliament in September 1995 and entered into force in the beginning of 1996. They include an "Agreement on Trade Relations", an "Investment Incentive Agreement", and a treaty on the "Reciprocal Encouragement and Protection of Investment" (generally referred to as the Bilateral Investment Treaty, or BIT). Armenia does not have a bilateral taxation treaty with the United States. The 1994 Law on Foreign Investment governs all direct investments in Armenia, including those from the United States.
Approximately 70 American-owned firms currently do business in Armenia, including Dell, Microsoft, and IBM. Recent major American investment projects include the Hotel Armenia/Marriott; the Hotel Ani Plaza; Tufenkian Holdings (carpet and furnishing production, hotels, and construction); several subsidiaries of U.S.-based information technology firms, including Viasphere Technopark, an IT incubator; Synopsys; a Greek-owned Coca-Cola bottling plant; jewelry and textile production facilities; several copper and molybdenum mining companies; and the Hovnanian International Construction Company.
U.S. government-funded agencies involved in Armenian economic institutions The U.S. continues to work closely with international financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to help Armenia in its transition to a free-market economy. Armenia has embarked upon an ambitious reform program, which has resulted in a double-digit GDP growth for the last 6 years. U.S. economic assistance programs, primarily under the administration of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), have three objectives: to promote sustainable private sector economic growth, to strengthen non-executive governmental systems and civil society to build a more robust democracy, and to ensure a smooth transition towards primary healthcare and the rationalization of social support systems of the government. Other agencies, including the Departments of State, Agriculture, Treasury, Defense, Commerce, Energy, Justice, and the Peace Corps sponsor various assistance projects. The United States-Armenia Task Force, established in 2000, is a bilateral commission that meets every 6 months to review the progress and objectives of U.S. assistance to Armenia. During the October 2007 meeting held in Washington, D.C., then-Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan met with then-US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and then-Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Reuben Jeffrey.
Specific USAID programs focus on private sector competitiveness and workforce development in selected industries, including information technology and tourism; development of the financial sector and fiscal authorities to achieve an enabling environment for businesses; and reforms promoting the efficient and safe use of energy and water; democracy and good governance programs, including the promotion of a well-informed and active civil society, support to decentralization of authority, independent justice sector and the parliament to ensure the separation of power; social sector reform, including benefits and public services administration for vulnerable populations; health sector reform, including improvement of primary healthcare (PHC) services with an emphasis on preventive care; strengthening of reproductive, maternal, and child healthcare countrywide to ensure access to quality PHC services in rural areas; public education programs; and training for PHC providers.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Caucasus Agricultural Development Initiative provides targeted and sustained technical and marketing assistance to small and medium-sized agribusinesses, farmer-marketing associations, and the Government of Armenia. USDA's goal is to sustain the productivity of the agricultural sector by expanding access to markets and credit, increasing efficiency, and modernizing agriculture systems. USDA's priority assistance areas are farm credit, food safety and animal health, support to the Armenian private sector through the NGO CARD. Also, as a training component of USDA projects in Armenia, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Cochran Fellowship Program provides training to Armenian agriculturists in the United States.