Azerbaijan obstructs Armenia–Turkey normalization, Armenian parliamentary speaker says

By Lia Avagyan

Azerbaijan is hindering the normalization process between Armenia and Turkey by using its political influence, Armenian parliamentary speaker Alen Simonyan said in an interview with the Istanbul-based newspaper Agos published today.

Simonyan, who visited Istanbul for an Inter-Parliamentary Union assembly last week, said Armenia had done its part in the efforts to restore ties with Ankara and is waiting for Turkey to take further steps.

“Azerbaijan is currently obstructing the process by using its lobbying and influence,” Simonyan said, according to the report.

Armenia and Turkey have no diplomatic relations, and the shared land border has remained closed since 1993 after Ankara shut it during the First Karabakh war. The two countries launched a normalization process in 2021, including talks between special envoys, but progress has been slow.

Simonyan said there were no urgent bilateral disputes requiring resolution and that the opening of the land border had been promised several times but repeatedly delayed.

“Everything has been done on both sides,” he said. “When I speak with my Turkish colleagues, I realize they do not have much to say either.”

Simonyan added that Armenia should not be isolated from the region and must be prepared to negotiate directly with its neighbors.

During the visit, Simonyan also met Patriarch Sahak Mashalyan at the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey and held talks with representatives of the Armenian community media, including Agos.