The U.S. Department of State welcomed Nersis Yeritsian, Armenia’s Minister of Economy, and his delegation for the 18
th iteration of the U.S.-Armenia Joint Economic Taskforce (USATF). During his visit to the U.S., Minister Yeritsian and his team met with officials from several agencies in the U.S. Government, including the Department of State, Department of Treasury, Department of Commerce, and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
The USATF, established in 2000, has met semi-annually to provide a forum in which to further cooperation between our two countries, advance economic and market reforms in Armenia, and discuss opportunities for U.S. assistance to contribute to Armenia’s long-term economic development. The task force is an open forum to discuss issues of concern and interest to both countries. This year’s discussion in Washington, D.C., co-chaired by Daniel N. Rosenblum, Coordinator for Assistance to Europe and Eurasia, and Minister Yeritsian, focused on the following themes: promoting good governance and democracy development, addressing regional issues, and enhancing the business climate in Armenia. The resulting action plan, which details the specific actions each side will take to further our mutual cooperation on Armenia’s development, includes items from all of these areas.
The U.S. Government and the Government of Armenia concluded an important agreement on science and technology cooperation as part of the Task Force’s meetings in Washington, D.C. The Director of the National Science Foundation, Dr. Arden Bement Jr., joined Minister Yeritsian in signing a memorandum of understanding that will facilitate cooperation in numerous areas of mutual interest between the United States and Armenia, including information technology, intellectual property, earth sciences, and others.
