Yerevan, Armenia - Vice President JD Vance arrived in Armenia on Monday, before a scheduled trip to Azerbaijan, as Washington seeks to consolidate a peace process between the neighbors.

Vance is the most senior US official to visit Armenia, where he is also expected to advance a flagship project to improve road-and-rail infrastructure in the region.

His visit to Armenia – until recently a close Russia ally – comes as Moscow's influence has dwindled in the region since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

At a White House summit in August 2025, US President Donald Trump brokered an agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan that saw the two countries commit to renouncing claims on each other's territory and refrain from using force.

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The arch-foes have fought two wars over the Karabakh region in recent years.

Azerbaijan finally seized the mountainous territory in a lightning offensive in 2023, ending three decades of rule by Armenian separatists.

On Monday, Vance will hold talks with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the premier's office said.

He will head to Azerbaijan's capital Baku on Tuesday.

The US State Department said the visit would "advance President Donald Trump's peace efforts and promote the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP)."

The TRIPP is a proposed road-and-rail corridor designed to link Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave, cut off from the mainland by Armenian territory, while integrating the region into a wider east-west trade route connecting Central Asia and the Caspian basin to Europe.