The National Assembly’s Armenia-USA Parliamentary Friendship Group and the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues held a virtual signing ceremony of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on July 31 reinforcing the relationship between the two legislatures.  The virtual ceremony was co-hosted by U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, Lynne M. Tracy, and Armenian Ambassador to the United States Varuzhan Nersesyan.  Lilit Makunts, the head of the Friendship Group and parliamentary majority leader, accompanied by representatives of the two opposition parties in the National Assembly, and Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ), the Co-Chair of the Armenian Caucus, signed the MOU during the ceremony.  The MOU had been signed earlier by Caucus Co-Chair Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA) and Vice-Chair Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA).  The MOU articulated the shared goal of the Friendship Group and the Congressional Caucus to advance the U.S.-Armenia bilateral relationship and committed the two legislatures to regular consultations and increased legislative cooperation in areas of mutual interest.  This includes trade and investment promotion, political party development, institutional transparency and resilience, rule of law, civil society development, and media freedom.