Diplomatic sources say Türkiye adheres to a sincere approach to relaunching ties with Armenia. Momentum has slowed but a positive mood lingers in Türkiye for achieving ultimate peace with a neighbor.
A year has passed since the first re-normalization talks between Türkiye and Armenia were held. Resuming direct flights between the two countries and removing obstacles to direct air cargo trade have played important roles in the process. After the Second Karabakh War, which started between Azerbaijan and Armenia in September 2020 and continued for 44 days, the ice was broken between Ankara and Yerevan. After positive messages from both countries, special representatives were appointed for normalization talks.
Serdar Kılıç, Türkiye’s former ambassador to Washington, was appointed special representative. Ruben Rubinyan, the deputy speaker of the Armenian Parliament, was appointed special representative of the Yerevan administration within the scope of the dialogue process. Kılıç and Rubinyan held their first meeting in Moscow on Jan. 14, 2022, to discuss normalization. They agreed that negotiations aimed at full normalization should continue without preconditions.
As talks got underway, direct flights between Istanbul and Yerevan resumed on Feb. 2, 2022. Kılıç and Rubinyan met on Feb. 24, 2022, in Vienna for a second time where Türkiye and Armenia reiterated their agreement to continue negotiations without preset expectations.
Another hopeful step came in March. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan attended the Antalya Diplomacy Forum. Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Mirzoyan met on March 12, 2022, for the first foreign ministerial-level meeting of the two countries in nearly nine years. The third meeting of the special representatives was held on May 3, 2022, in Vienna where possible steps for concrete progress were discussed. The fourth meeting, the last between Kılıç and Rubinyan, was held on July 1 in Vienna. It was agreed that the land border between Türkiye and Armenia should be opened as soon as possible for third-country nationals visiting the two countries. They also agreed that direct air cargo trade should be started as soon as possible.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan received Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in the capital of the Czech Republic. Erdoğan was in Prague to attend the European Political Community meeting on Oct. 6, 2022.
As a result of negotiations, it was announced that barriers to direct air cargo transportation would be lifted on Jan. 1, 2023.
Diplomatic sources informed Anadolu Agency (AA) that after the fourth meeting on July 1, 2022, two separate expert-level meetings were held with the participation of various institutions. They noted technical studies were ongoing to implement decisions to enable the transit of third-country nationals between Ankara and Yerevan.
They specified positive developments at the Alican Border Gate between Turkish and Armenian authorities while pointing out that the issue of third-country citizens' passage awaited clarification as it is intertwined with the status of the bridge. Some other topics, especially the initiation of mutual trade, could be discussed in upcoming talks.
In the fourth meeting, two concrete decisions were made and two separate meetings were held at technical levels. Sources said that there was a slowdown in momentum compared to previous months. However, the engagement did not stop and technical issues are currently being discussed.
Stressing that external interventions can harm all processes in the region, sources said Ankara will continue to make efforts not only for Armenia-Türkiye relations but for long-term peace and stability in the region. "We will continue to do what we have done because we are trying to do this sincerely,” sources said.
Referring to the possibility of the resumption of trade via land routes, they said there was annual traffic of 160,000 tons of commercial products between the countries in 1993. That could increase exponentially if a railway route between the two countries is reopened.
Sources said there is no date for a fifth round of talks, but mutual steps should be taken for them to be held and that the next talks will be scheduled to be held in Türkiye or Armenia.
Regarding direct flights, they said reciprocal flights have commenced according to the plans. "Face-to-face contact has started,” they said. "A Turkish citizen was applying for a visa through Tbilisi because there was no transportation to Armenia. The internet in Armenia was closed to the whole of Türkiye in the past. Now it is open. Consular affairs are running extremely well. Some humanitarian steps are also being taken. As a result of negotiations, removing obstacles to direct air cargo trade will contribute significantly to economic relations between the two countries," they said.
