Turkish foreign minister reiterates Türkiye’s determination to normalize relations with Armenia

ISTANBUL

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Tuesday reiterated Türkiye’s policy on normalizing relations with Armenia.

“When Azerbaijan and Armenia sign a final peace agreement, we will be ready to normalize relations with Armenia. We have declared this before,” he said.

“The biggest reason Armenia is so eager for peace in the region is that it sees a declaration of intent from us regarding the normalization of relations with Türkiye," he added, noting that the opening of the border and the revival of the economy are important issues for them.

He was responding to questions and criticisms from lawmakers during discussions on his ministry’s 2026 budget at the Turkish Parliament's Planning and Budget Committee.

Fidan said they do not want a frozen conflict in the South Caucasus.

“If we normalize relations at this point, we will have taken away the biggest reason for Armenia to sign a peace agreement with Azerbaijan. Therefore, we may face the possibility of a frozen conflict in the region. We do not want this.”

He said the two countries had initiated an agreement in Washington, noting that there were two issues not covered in it: one being the Zangezur Corridor issue and the other being certain matters related to the Armenian constitution. He said that once these issues were resolved and Azerbaijan signed the final agreement, Türkiye would also open its border gates with Armenia.

Turning to the European Union, Fidan noted that the reason for the visa restrictions imposed by the bloc was that the migration issue within the EU itself was dramatically changing the internal political equation.

"They have linked the rise of the far right to migrant movements. Specifically, Muslim migration movements, immigration from certain Muslim countries. Now, because Europeans are modern, they can't say, ‘I don't want Muslims.’ They can't openly mention certain countries. That's why they can introduce a series of unnamed, covert measures. We are trying to identify these on the ground and address them directly with our European counterparts. But of course, after this process has created such mutual dependence, the next step should be visa liberalization."

Pointing to the extensive cooperation and the social, student and business mobility between European countries and Türkiye, Fidan said: "The only thing that will make this mobility possible is visa liberalization. Europe is aware of this, but due to its identity policy, Europe has suspended certain issues in its relations with Türkiye."

He said the EU has demonstrated a determination not to accept a Muslim country into its ranks, pointing to “Europe's two driving forces. France has demonstrated a clearer determination, while Germany has remained silent on this issue.”