President Khachaturyan says Armenia ready at any time for Türkiye to open border

President Vahagn Khachaturyan said Armenia is ready at any time for the opening of its land border with Türkiye and the establishment of diplomatic ties.

During a press briefing summing up his official visit to the Czech Republic, Khachaturyan said Armenia is doing everything to achieve this goal.

Türkiye unilaterally closed its land border with Armenia in 1993. The two countries have intensified normalization efforts in recent years, and Armenia has said it stands ready for Türkiye to open the border at any time. The border checkpoints have been upgraded and is ready to operate.

Asked about the Armenia-Türkiye normalization process and the prospects for opening the border, he said the necessary work has been carried out at the border checkpoints, and the facilities are ready to ensure the movement of people, goods and vehicles.

“We are doing everything to actually open the borders and establish diplomatic relations. A diplomatic pause has been taken, and we are trying to find a solution that will not only develop Armenian-Turkish relations but also establish overall peace in the region,” Khachaturyan said.

According to the President, the Armenian-Turkish normalization process is also viewed in the context of improving relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and establishing peace in the region.

Khachaturyan emphasized that Armenia is ready for the opening of the land border with Türkiye, while the work carried out on border infrastructure makes it possible to serve people, goods and vehicles.

“We are ready for the opening of the border at any time, including now. You are aware that the necessary work has been carried out at the border checkpoints, and they are ready to ensure the movement of people, goods and vehicles,” he said.

The President highlighted that Armenia has presented a number of proposals for the phased opening of the Armenian-Turkish border. They concern opening the border to holders of diplomatic passports and citizens of third countries.

“We had made proposals to allow people holding diplomatic passports to make visits, as well as to allow citizens of third countries to visit Türkiye through Armenia.

In other words, there are several ideas, some of which are at the implementation stage,” Khachaturyan said.

The President of Armenia cited the joint restoration of the historic Ani Bridge and the recent Armenia-Türkiye business forum held in Yerevan on September 3-4 as practical examples of Armenian-Turkish cooperation.

“The restoration of the same old bridge of Ani is being carried out jointly. A major Armenian-Turkish business forum is being held in Armenia.

This also shows that there are no restrictions in our cooperation, but it is necessary to establish diplomatic relations and open the border,” Khachaturyan emphasized.

According to him, the same approach applies to relations with Azerbaijan, while one of the issues currently under discussion is the timing of jointly implementing the processes.

“The same applies to Azerbaijan. Here, the issue is the timing of jointly implementing this. Now we need to be able to move this process forward, because in reality they are also interested, and we are also interested.

There is no side that opposes the development or improvement of Armenia-Türkiye relations,” the President of the Republic of Armenia said.

The President said that increased contacts between Armenia and Türkiye contribute to the gradual strengthening of mutual trust and more practical cooperation between the relevant institutions of the two countries.

“The important thing is that we are gradually becoming more trustworthy to each other. It is important that we are able to talk to our partners in Türkiye, intensify our contacts and make them more concrete,” the President said.

He emphasized that there have already been practical changes in the trade relations between the two countries. He said that trade carried out by rail has enabled Armenia to use the Kars-Akhalkalaki route.

“You see the trade carried out by rail, which has enabled us to use the Kars-Akhalkalaki route.

In addition, a special trade code has been established for us. Previously, goods imported into Armenia came under Georgian codes. Now this is happening directly,” Khachaturyan said, adding that Armenian vehicles can currently cross the border with Türkiye without changing their license plates.

“When we see this progress even compared with the beginning of the year, we feel that quite serious work is being carried out by the relevant bodies of the two countries, and it is yielding results,” the President said.

Khachaturyan emphasized that Armenian businesspeople are also noticing the changes that have taken place. They make it possible to strengthen economic ties in a new format, increase trade volumes and create an alternative market for Armenia.

“When we talk to businesspeople, we understand that they feel and see these changes. This provides a new opportunity to strengthen our economic ties, increase trade and, ultimately, have an alternative market.

We understood what it means to depend on one market or work in only one direction. Now it is necessary for us to diversify our trade relations, which is what we are engaged in. The Türkiye direction is also part of this process,” he emphasized.

The President also highlighted the Türkiye direction because Armenia is a landlocked country, and transportation costs have a significant impact on the cost and competitiveness of Armenian products.

According to Khachaturyan, calculations carried out in Armenia show that the country’s transportation costs are around 30 percent higher than in neighboring countries.

According to him, the opening of the border will enable Armenia to use Turkish ports on the Mediterranean Sea.

“We will have the opportunity, even though we are a landlocked country, to use Turkish ports on the Mediterranean Sea,” Khachaturyan noted.

The President emphasized that Armenia will continue working toward establishing full economic and political relations with neighboring countries.

“Let us appreciate what we have today. Of course, we will do everything to establish full economic and political relations with our neighboring countries,” Khachaturyan concluded.