On February 4, the Director of RS - Deputy Minister of IA Aram Ghazaryan received the delegation of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation led by the Head of the Emergency Relief and Early Recovery Section David Sochor.

The meeting was attended by the Tania Rohrer, Program Officer at Emergency Relief and Early Recovery Section and the RS Deputy Director of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Arsen Mkrtchyan, as well as Emergency Response Service representatives.

Welcoming the guests, Aram Ghazaryan expressed his gratitude to the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation for undertaking the mentorship of the external requalification of the Armenian Urban Search and Rescue (URR) team in 2028 according to the standards of the UN International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG).

He noted that the cooperation between the Agency and the Rescue Service of the MIA was based on a reliable and effective partnership for more than two decades. According to the RS Director the new initiative will play an important role in the development of urban search and rescue capabilities of Armenia.

Noting that the Swiss side also provided mentoring in 2022, David Sochor emphasized that it was a pleasure to participate in the reclassification process again and assume the responsibility of mentoring. He noted that activities with the COP team members has already started.

According to David Sochor, the Agency's focus was on improving the organizational and team management system, which will allow for more effective organization of preparatory work and exercises, fully complying with INSARAG requirements.

At the end of the meeting, the parties reaffirmed their willingness to continue and expand cooperation, which will contribute to the development of the Armenian urban search and rescue system, its compliance with international standards and the strengthening of effective emergency response capabilities.

The delegation members also had a working meeting with the leadership of the Armenian urban search and rescue team, and discussed upcoming activities.