Armenia Completes Preparations to Open Border With Türkiye — Armenian Security Council Head

Armenia has completed all necessary preparations for reopening its border with Türkiye, according to Armen Grigoryan, Secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, Orda.kz reports, citing NewsArmenia.AM.

Citing research by the Amberd Institute, Grigoryan said open borders could bring mutual benefits to both nations and boost trade by up to 200%.

Using Turkish territory would shorten trade routes between Armenia and Eastern Europe by 10–25%, and between Armenia and Central Europe by 5–15%,
 he said at the Crossroads of Peace conference in Brussels, organized by Rasmussen Global.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made a similar statement during a parliamentary discussion of the 2026 draft state budget on October 27. He claimed Armenia was ready to provide transit for trucks traveling between Türkiye and Azerbaijan via the Margara–Yeghegnadzor–Sisian–Goris route.

Before that remark, Azerbaijan lifted all cargo transit restrictions to Armenia that had been in place since the Karabakh conflict in the 1990s. The announcement was made by President Ilham Aliyev during a joint press conference with Qasym-Jomart Toqayev in Astana in late October.

Background

Armenia and Türkiye have had strained diplomatic relations since 1991, and the border has been closed since 1993 at Ankara’s initiative. 

Tensions stem from Türkiye’s stance on the Armenian Genocide and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Since 2021, the two sides have taken gradual steps toward normalization, including appointing envoys, launching direct cargo flights in 2023, and holding regular meetings between officials.

Most recently, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan received Serdar Kılıç, Türkiye’s special representative for the normalization process of Armenian-Turkish relations, on September 12, 2025.

Deputy Speaker Ruben Rubinyan and former Turkish ambassador Serdar Kılıç also met in Yerevan on September 12, 2025, agreeing to accelerate technical work on reopening land crossings and restoring the Gyumri–Kars railway and power lines.