Alexander Pracht
A new European Commission report has flagged several issues concerning the treatment of Armenians and other ethnic and religious minorities in Turkey, including restrictions on Armenian children's access to minority schools, bans on Armenian Genocide commemorations and continuing hate speech and hate crimes.
The report, prepared by the Commission's Directorate-General for Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood, was published on Wednesday.
One of the issues highlighted was a decision introduced by the Turkish government in August to bar foreign nationals from enrolling in ethnic minority schools. The measure has affected children holding Armenian citizenship, who had previously been permitted to attend private Armenian schools under a special arrangement dating back to 2012. That regulation allowed Armenian nationals to study alongside their Turkish-Armenian classmates, although they were not entitled to receive official diplomas. Following the August decision, their only option is to attend regular Turkish state schools.
“Ministry of National Education inspectors conducted checks at minority schools focusing on ‘guest students’. Armenian schools were verbally informed that they would no longer be permitted to admit students from Armenia, while the status of those already enrolled was also reviewed. Greek and Jewish minority schools were also reportedly included in the inspections,” the report said.
The European Commission also noted that the Istanbul Governorate prohibited public events marking Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day in April 2026. It added that the court case concerning the retrial of state officials involved in the 2007 murder of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink remains pending before Turkey's Court of Cassation.
“Hate speech and hate crimes continued, with Syrians, Greeks, Armenians, Jews and Alevis being the main targets,” the report said.
Armenia-Turkey normalization
On bilateral relations, the report said normalization between Yerevan and Ankara had continued to advance over the past year, although Turkey has stressed the importance of balancing progress with the normalization of Armenia-Azerbaijan relations.
The latter is a reference to Ankara's longstanding position that it will not open its land border with Armenia, closed since 1993, until Yerevan and Baku reach a final peace agreement.
Several Armenian officials have recently expressed frustration with this linkage, suggesting that Azerbaijan is lobbying Turkish authorities to maintain the border closure and limit trade.
Also read: European Parliament calls for Ankara’s stronger role in Yerevan–Baku normalization
The report nevertheless highlighted several steps towards rapprochement. In May 2026, Turkey decided to resume direct bilateral trade with Armenia through Georgia. Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz also visited Yerevan that month to attend the European Political Community summit, during which the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on restoring the historic Ani Bridge.
Other developments included the launch of daily Turkish Airlines flights between Yerevan and Istanbul in March and preparations for the rehabilitation of the Kars-Gyumri railway line.
Although Turkey recognized Armenia’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 and has no territorial claims to its territory, Yerevan and Ankara have no diplomatic relations. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced on Friday that Yerevan and Ankara may establish diplomatic relations “soon.”
The EU publishes annual country reports assessing political, economic and institutional developments in countries seeking membership of the bloc. Turkey has held candidate status for decades, but its accession negotiations have largely remained at a standstill for years. In August, President Recep Erdoğan said membership was not a priority for Ankara.
Stories
