Rustam Badasyan, Chairman of the State Revenue Committee of Armenia, announced that the "Margara" border checkpoint on the Armenian-Turkish border is prepared to accommodate new categories of travelers.
At a briefing with journalists on August 1, Badasyan stated that the checkpoint is now capable of processing citizens from third countries as well as individuals holding diplomatic passports.
"The Margara checkpoint has long been ready to serve third-country nationals and individuals with diplomatic passports," Badasyan emphasized, highlighting the technical and infrastructural readiness of the border point.
However, despite the technical readiness, the exact date for the checkpoint's operation under the new regime has not yet been determined. When asked about specific timelines, Badasyan responded, "I don't know; it should be a political decision."
The process of normalizing Armenian-Turkish relations began at the start of 2022. The first meeting of the special representatives of Armenia and Turkey took place on January 14 in Moscow. Subsequently, the envoys held three more meetings in Vienna.
On July 1, 2022, in Vienna, Rubinyan and Kılıç agreed to facilitate the crossing of the Armenian-Turkish land border as soon as possible for third-country nationals and holders of diplomatic passports. However, these agreements have not yet been implemented.
Despite the closed border and the absence of diplomatic relations, trade between the two countries has almost never ceased in the post-Soviet period. According to the Statistical Committee of Armenia, in January-May of this year, the trade turnover between Armenia and Turkey amounted to over $131 million. Of this amount, only $225,000 accounted for Armenian exports to Turkey, while the rest represented imports of Turkish goods to Armenia.
The trade figures for the five months are only $2 million higher than the same period in 2023.
