Russia will reportedly sell four Russian multirole fighter jets to Armenia in line with a contract signed by the two states.
The Moscow daily “Kommersant” reported on Friday that the Sukhoi Su-30SM jets will be delivered to Armenia next year at discounted prices reflecting the South Caucasus state’s close military ties with Russia.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s government showed a strong interest in acquiring such aircraft shortly after taking office in May last year. Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan said in December that Moscow and Yerevan are now close to signing a contract on the delivery of the warplanes which would significantly strengthen Armenia’s modest Air Force.
Citing the Armenian Defense Ministry, the Russian Sputnik news agency reported on Wednesday that the contract has already been signed. A ministry spokesman did not explicitly confirm the information when he spoke to RFE/RL’s Armenian service on Thursday.
“Kommersant” cited an unnamed “top manager of one of the aviation industry enterprises” of Russia as saying that the deal has indeed been signed and that Armenia will buy four Su-30SMs at internal Russian prices set well below international market-based levels. He did not specify their total cost, saying only that Yerevan will pay for them with a Russian loan.
Armenia is eligible for such discounts because of its membership in the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
The Russian defense industry executive was also quoted as saying that under the terms of the contract the Russian military will also train Armenian pilots to fly the sophisticated aircraft.
“In essence, this is the first contract signed with the Armenian Defense Ministry under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, and it was important for us to confirm the strength of our positions in our CSTO ally,” he added.
The Armenian Air Force currently consists of 15 or so low-flying Su-25 jets designed for air-to-ground missions.
Su-30SM can perform a broader range of military tasks with more long-range and precision-guided weapons. It is a more advanced version of a heavy fighter jet developed by the Sukhoi company in the late 1980s. The Russian military commissioned the first batch of such aircraft in 2012.
Tonoyan said in August that the Armenian army needs them too because “no missile system can be a substitute for this capacity in terms of flexibility and resilience.”
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