Turkish press: Turkey, Armenia to mutually appoint envoys to normalize relations

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Ankara, Turkey, Dec. 22, 2018. (Photo by Getty Images)

Turkey and Armenia will mutually appoint special envoys to discuss steps to normalize ties, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu announced Monday.

The two countries will also restart charter flights between Istanbul and Yerevan, Çavuşoğlu said at his ministry's budget discussions in the Parliament.

Armenia and Turkey signed a landmark peace accord in 2009 to restore ties and open their shared border after decades, but the deal was never ratified and ties have remained tense.

During the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict last year, Ankara supported Azerbaijan and accused Yerevan of occupying Azeri territories.

Çavuşoğlu said Turkey would coordinate steps to normalize ties between Armenia and Azerbaijan.