Armenian national flag flying at the spire of the railway station building in Yerevan, Armenia, Apr. 18, 2018. (Getty Images)
Armenia on Saturday appointed its special representative for dialogue with Turkey, the Armenian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Saturday.
“Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Ruben Rubinyan will be the special representative of the Republic of #Armenia for the process of the dialogue between Armenia and #Turkey,” the spokesperson said on Twitter.
On Wednesday, Turkey appointed Serdar Kılıç, former ambassador to the United States, as a special envoy to discuss steps for the normalization of ties with Armenia.
Kılıç was appointed with the approval of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said.
Çavuşoğlu said that positive statements for the normalization of relations were recently made from both sides, adding that there is a need to take confidence-building measures.
The borders between the two countries have been closed for decades and diplomatic relations have been on hold.
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.
Relations between Armenia and Turkey have historically been complicated. Turkey's position on the events of 1915 is that Armenians lost their lives in eastern Anatolia after some sided with the invading Russians and revolted against the Ottoman forces. The subsequent relocation of Armenians resulted in numerous casualties, with massacres by militaries and militia groups from both sides increasing the death toll.
Turkey objects to the presentation of the incidents as "genocide" but describes the 1915 events as a tragedy in which both sides suffered casualties.
Ankara has repeatedly proposed the creation of a joint commission made up of historians from Turkey and Armenia and international experts to tackle the issue.
During the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict last year, Ankara supported Baku and accused Yerevan of occupying Azerbaijan’s territories.