For the second time in one week, high-ranking officials from the United States and Turkey have discussed the normalization of relations between Ankara and Yerevan.
President Biden’s National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan had a telephone conversation with Turkish presidential spokesperson and chief advisor Ibrahim Kalin. The two discussed, among other topics, the normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey, the Milliyet newspaper reported.
Sullivan and Kalin reportedly discussed issues of political and economic relations, development of defense cooperation, as well as exchanged views on global and regional issues: the crisis in Ukraine, the protests in Kazakhstan, the process of normalization of relations with Armenia, the developments in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ethiopia.
Last week, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also discussed the Armenia-Turkey normalization issue with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. When Cavusolgu announced Ankara’s readiness to establish the process, Bloomberg reported that normalization of ties was a suggestion presented to Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by President Joe Biden.
The renewed process to normalize relations between Turkey and Armenia is progressing rapidly, as special envoys appointed by Yerevan and Ankara are slated to meet on Friday in Moscow to kick off the process.
Turkey has appointed the country’s former ambassador to the U.S. Serdar Kilic, who met with on Monday with Turkey’s Defense Minister Hulusi Akar. The ministry did not release details of the meeting.
An outspoken denier of the Armenian Genocide, Kilic will meet with Armenia’s special envoy Ruben Rubinyan on Friday.
Another aspect of the normalization process, as announced by Cavusoglu in mid-December was establishing flights between Istanbul and Yerevan.
FlyOne Armenia and Pegasus Airlines have received permission from the Civil Aviation Committee to operate Yerevan-Istanbul-Yerevan charter flights, Armenia’s ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure told Armenpress on Monday.
Earlier, the Armenian aviation authorities issued a permit to FlyOne Armenia airline to operate charter flights in the Yerevan-Istanbul-Yerevan route. FlyOne Armenia had applied to the aviation authorities of both Armenia and Turkey with the request to operate charter roundtrip flights from Yerevan to Istanbul.
Asked when the flights will be launched, FlyOne Armenia Board President Aram Ananyan said they are awaiting the permit from the Turkish aviation authorities.
