Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know
The move removes a decades-old reexport mechanism routed largely through Georgia as Ankara and Yerevan step up normalization efforts.
ANKARA — Turkey and Armenia have completed bureaucratic preparations to allow direct land trade via third countries without treating shipments as reexports, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oncu Keceli announced Wednesday.
The move will remove a decades-old reexport mechanism used in the two countries’ land trade as part of normalization efforts between Ankara and Yerevan. The new arrangement, which comes as Ankara ramps up efforts to normalize ties with Yerevan amid broader US-led regional peace efforts in the South Caucasus, was first reported by Al-Monitor in February.
Turkey and Armenia have no formal diplomatic relations, and their border has remained closed since 1993. But the two capitals launched normalization talks in 2022 in a bid to open the border and ultimately establish formal diplomatic ties.
Inside the arrangement: “Goods shipped from Turkey to Armenia via a third country or from Armenia to Turkey along the same route can now list ‘Armenia/Turkey’ as their final destination or point of departure,” Keceli said in a statement.
