FSI Dean Receives Armenian Ambassador to Discuss Enhancing Bilateral Cooperation

The Dean of the Foreign Service Institute, H.E. Ambassador Dr Mohammed Abdullah Shummary, received H.E. the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to the Republic of Iraq, Mr Ruben Soghoyan, on Monday, 5 October 2026, at the Ministry’s headquarters, to discuss ways to enhance bilateral cooperation between the Foreign Service Institute and the Armenian Diplomatic Academy and to activate the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two sides.

At the outset of the meeting, the Armenian Ambassador expressed his appreciation to the Dean for the warm reception, stressing the importance of strengthening cooperation in diplomatic training and capacity building, as well as exchanging expertise and personnel, underscoring the importance of activating the MoU signed between the Foreign Service Institute and the Armenian Diplomatic Academy.

For his part, the Dean welcomed the Ambassador, stressing the importance of developing cooperation with the Armenian side and benefiting from the exchange of expertise and experiences in diplomatic training, expressing the Institute’s readiness to activate the MoU signed between the two sides and to consider proposals that could broaden areas of cooperation. He also briefed the Armenian side on the “Study in Iraq” initiative and the opportunities it offers for study at Iraqi universities.

The meeting also addressed a number of practical proposals for activating cooperation, including the exchange of training programmes for personnel, the organisation of dialogue sessions, and the use of videoconferencing technologies to hold joint events.

At the conclusion of the meeting, both sides affirmed the importance of maintaining communication and coordination in a manner that contributes to developing training and academic cooperation and strengthening bilateral relations between the two sides.