Following a meeting of the special representatives for the normalisation of Armenian-Turkish relations, Ankara and Yerevan agreed to partly open their shared border.
According to reports, the Turkish and Armenian special envoys, Ambassador Serdar Kilic, and Vice Speaker of Parliament, Ruben Rubinyan, agreed on Friday (1 July), to allow third country citizens visiting either of the two countries to cross the shared border. This new development, which will be implemented “at the earliest date possible”, will not yet permit Armenian and Turkish citizens to cross the border. However, it is the first step in opening a border which has been closed for almost 30 years, and a concrete move towards the full normalisation of relations.
During the 4th meeting of the envoys, which took place in Vienna, the sides also agreed to commence direct air cargo trade between Armenia and Turkey at the earliest possible date.
Finally, they discussed other possible steps which could be undertaken “to achieve the ultimate goal of full normalisation”, and re-emphasised their commitments to continue the normalisation process without preconditions.