Hope for Swift Implementation of 2022 Agreement With Turkey: Ruben Rubinyan

YEREVAN — Armenia hopes for the prompt implementation of the agreement reached with Turkey in 2022 to open the border for citizens of third countries and holders of diplomatic passports, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Ruben Rubinyan stated during a brief interview in parliament.

Commenting on possible timelines for opening the border, Rubinyan said he could not provide specific details but noted that Turkey is currently rehabilitating the Alican border checkpoint on its frontier with Armenia.

“Experience in the Armenia–Turkey normalization process shows that it is better for something to happen first, and then to announce it,” Rubinyan said.

The Deputy Speaker emphasized that Armenia’s position has consistently been in favor of fully open borders and the establishment of diplomatic relations as soon as possible.

In recent days, Turkish state media reported that renovation work at the Alican border checkpoint, located along the Armenia–Turkey border, is approximately 90 percent complete. It is also reported that buildings are being constructed at the checkpoint to accommodate customs and other procedures. Along the road leading to the border, billboards and banners have been installed to introduce Iğdır and the surrounding region to visitors arriving from Armenia.

The land border between Armenia and Turkey was unilaterally closed by Ankara in 1993 during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War. Since 2021, the two countries have resumed diplomatic contacts at the level of special envoys, foreign ministers, and national leaders.

The Alican–Margara bridge was briefly opened in February 2023, when Armenia sent humanitarian aid and rescue teams to Turkey following a devastating earthquake.

Although both sides have announced an agreement to open the border to citizens of third countries and holders of diplomatic passports, no specific timelines have yet been made public. Yerevan has previously stated that the Armenian-side Margara checkpoint is fully ready for operation.

On January 14, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that developments would take place in relations with Turkey. In December 2025, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also stated that several symbolic steps would be taken starting in early 2026.

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Separately, Armenia’s National Security Service has classified as a state secret information concerning the possible withdrawal of Russian border guards from the Akhurik border checkpoint and the transfer of control to the Armenian side, declining to provide responses to inquiries from CivilNet. The NSS stated that the requested information is not subject to disclosure.