Flights Expected to Increase Between Armenia and Turkey; Opening of Gyumri-Kars Railway Discussed
The number of flights between Armenia and Turkey is expected to increase, connecting Yerevan, Gyumri, and cities in Turkey. This was stated by RA Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan at the conference titled “Orbeli Forum: Building Peace and Multilateral Cooperation,” in response to a question from a Turkish journalist. At the same time, Turkish diplomatic sources told RIA Novosti that the issue of opening the border is not yet under discussion, but the process of normalizing relations is ongoing.
According to Mirzoyan, Armenian-Turkish relations are the antithesis of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations: while a peace process has been established with Baku, the borders with Ankara remain closed and there are no diplomatic relations.
There have been flights, and there are flights today as well. There is an agreement to increase flights to Yerevan, to Gyumri, and consequently, to Turkish cities—Istanbul, and I assume also Ankara. The problem with Turkey remains the closed border and the absence of diplomatic relations, the Minister said.
Later, in a conversation with journalists, Mirzoyan also noted that he hopes it will be possible to open the Gyumri-Kars railway in the near future. According to him, the signals received from Turkey are positive, and the parties maintain an almost daily dialogue.
In recent weeks, the leadership of Armenia has highlighted the progress in normalizing relations with Turkey. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recently announced that the positive dialogue with Ankara gives hope that it will be possible to open the border soon.
Armenia and Turkey have not had diplomatic relations since 1991, and the state border between the countries has been closed since 1993 at the initiative of Ankara.