US foreign policy is advancing rapidly under the “America First” concept. However, it takes time for experts to grasp President Donald Trump’s foreign policy priorities, and foreign leaders need direct contact with his team to clarify their positions. One thing is certain: the “America First” foreign policy is non-negotiable, and other countries will need to adapt to this approach like Panama, El Salvador, and Colombia have already done. Armenia is not an exception in this context.
Due to miscalculations, the Armenian authorities aligned themselves with the Democrats, expecting their victory in the elections and Kamala Harris to become president. This move aimed to secure ongoing financial and political support for Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his team, along with stable bilateral relations for at least four years.
However, this reliance on one party and a lack of foreign policy diversification put Armenia in a challenging position. On one hand, the Armenians became closely linked to the Democrats, while on the other, their relations with the Trump administration soured due to the conservative and religious views of Trump’s team. The Armenian authorities are neither conservative nor particularly religious, and their strained relationship with the Armenian Apostolic Church further complicates the situation.
Given these circumstances, it was vital for Pashinyan to understand the approaches and foreign policy of the Trump administration in the South Caucasus. And in the shortest possible time, he needed to establish contact with this administration in order to get answers to existential questions.
Since Pashinyan was not invited to Trump’s inauguration, despite the fact that Armenia had signed a strategic partnership charter with the United States a few days earlier, Pashinyan was forced to travel to Washington at the first opportunity, trying to meet with the US political establishment and decision-makers.
And so, the opportunity was found. Nikol Pashinyan visited the United States. The pretext for the visit was participation in the International Religious Freedom Summit and the National Prayer Breakfast Event. These events were scheduled for February 2-5 and are held annually in the capital, Washington. Formally, this served as the basis for Pashinyan’s visit to Washington, which, as already mentioned, began on February 3 and continues until the 7th.
