Armenia holding dialogue with Turkiye to establish diplomatic  relations, reopen borders -FM

ArmInfo. Armenia has established a near-daily dialogue with Turkey, the ultimate goal of which is to open its borders and establish diplomatic relations. This was stated by Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan during  discussions at a conference organized by the Orbeli Analytical  Center, entitled "Peace Quiz: A Conversation with the Armenian  Foreign Minister."

Mirzoyan expressed hope that the dialogue with Turkey will gradually  achieve results due to its intensive nature.

The Armenian Foreign Minister also believes that the dialogue with  Turkey can be seen as a mirror image of the situation with  Azerbaijan.

The minister recalled that with Azerbaijan, "peace has been  established between the governments; efforts are needed to reconcile  the people." "With Turkey, it's quite the opposite: people have  maintained contact for decades despite border closures and the  establishment of diplomatic relations; trade has been ongoing.  The  problem is that contacts were conducted through third countries.  There were and are direct flights, and an agreement has been reached  to increase the number of flights, not only to Yerevan but also to  Gyumri, as well as to Istanbul, Ankara, and other cities. The problem  with Turkey was the closed border and the lack of diplomatic  relations. Intensive dialogue continues," the Armenian Foreign  Minister said.

He recalled that meetings and visits had taken place, Prime Minister  Nikol Pashinyan visited Turkey, and Armenia provided assistance after  the devastating earthquake in Turkey. According to him, other  confidence-building measures are currently being discussed.

Mirzoyan expressed hope that tangible results will be achieved in  this area in the near future.  In general, touching on the  development of relations with the countries of the South Caucasus,  the minister noted that Armenia is interested in regional cooperation  and platforms. According to him, relations with Armenia's immediate  neighbors hold a special place in Armenia's policy, with two of which  we have excellent relations, and with the other two, relations are  improving.

"We are interested in both bilateral relations and regional  multilateral cooperation. We are interested in development, including  within the three-country South Caucasus alliance: Armenia,  Azerbaijan, and Georgia," the Foreign Minister emphasized, adding  that there are foreign policy issues where the three countries' views  may coincide.

At the same time, he recalled that Armenia is also interested in  cooperation within the "3+3" regional platform.