13:06,
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 16, ARMENPRESS. Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan’s visit to Turkey is very important and meaningful, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said.
“You know that yesterday the Foreign Minister visited Turkey, which I think is a very important and meaningful event,” PM Pashinyan said at the Cabinet meeting and asked the Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan to provide details.
FM Mirzoyan said the main topic of the visit and discussions was the earthquake.
“I have to state that the Turkish side, on the level of the central, local authorities and the population appreciated the service of our rescuers and the provision of humanitarian aid. This step gained rather positive reaction and gratitude. I also spoke to our rescuers, they told me how the populated treated them. I think this was an important humanitarian step. Certainly we discussed some issues concerning the bilateral relations, concrete agreements were reached, as my Turkish counterpart said in his statement for the press, I can also state that there is a decision to speed up this process of dialogue and the processes taking place with the goal of ultimately opening the borders. It was announced that we will carry out joint work in direction of restoring the Ani Bridge.
Essentially, we will try to complete by the beginning of the tourism season the process of opening the land border for citizens of third countries and diplomatic passport holders of our two countries,” FM Mirzoyan said.
PM Pashinyan in turn said that Armenia’s actions have first of all mostly a humanitarian motive.
“I have to emphasize that I find the criticism against us as totally unacceptable, because I can’t imagine any situation when someone can remain indifferent when millions of people need help on the other side of the door. That’s absolutely unacceptable under any grounds or reasons,” PM Pashinyan said.
He reminded that the government’s action plan emphasized the need to change the quality of Armenia’s relations in the region.
“I regret that such certain changes of atmosphere are happening in such conditions of a disaster, but perhaps objectively human tragedy makes people understand each other better, perhaps that’s the objective reality. I hope this can truly become a new starting point for establishing the Armenian-Turkish relations. We had prepared the blueprints for restoration of the Ani Bridge long ago, and this can truly become a meaningful step,” the Armenian PM said.