The border between Armenia and Turkey may open before the two sides manage to appoint new special envoys, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said after meeting OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and head of Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs Ignazio Cassis.
Mirzoyan said the ultimate goal of the Armenia-Turkey normalization process is the full normalization of relations and the complete opening of the border. He said there is now a real question over whether new envoys are needed at all if the border opens faster than the candidates can be agreed.
According to the minister, the process has matured to the point where a final and comprehensive settlement could be reached on any given day. He added that Armenia and Turkey are in near-daily contact and that negotiations are continuing on an ongoing basis.
Mirzoyan also noted that talks of this kind are not usually disclosed in full until there is a final agreement and a concrete outcome. He said the Armenia-Turkey negotiations are no exception in that respect.
He also said an Armenia-Turkey business forum is expected to be held and could be broader than the previous one, this time in Armenia. Mirzoyan said he hopes the closed border will again be opened for Armenian businesspeople to cross, although the overall normalization process is not yet complete.
