Kilich on Armenian-Turkish Negotiations and Friendly Relations with Rubinyan

On December 27, Turkey's special representative, Ambassador Serdar Kilic, delivered a speech at a conference organized by the Department of Linguistics and Historical Geography at Ankara University, titled “A Life Dedicated to Diplomacy: Armenia-Turkey Relations in Light of Recent Developments Through the Eyes of Diplomat Serdar Kilic.”

Kilic first addressed the ongoing processes between Armenia and Azerbaijan. He believes that existing issues can be overcome with mutual understanding and considering the long-term interests of both sides: “We must realize that a positive shift in one process positively affects the other process, and similarly, negative developments in one process affect the other. These two processes are separate but cannot be entirely segregated from each other.”

Moving on to the Armenian-Turkish normalization process, the Turkish special representative noted that there are discussions about Turkey and Armenia actually engaging in trilateral negotiations since Azerbaijan is also part of this process. “Of course, Azerbaijan is involved, and there are certain countries that have dialogues with Armenia as well. However, they are not physically part of this process and cannot impose conditions on it. This process is exclusively bilateral. It occurs solely between me and Armenia’s special representative Ruben Rubinyan. We also have a good relationship as friends.”

Kilic, recalling the positive atmosphere of recent meetings at various levels between Armenia and Turkey, nevertheless emphasized that there are certain issues at this stage. In his opinion, regional countries should be proactive in solving existing problems, but recently, the OSCE and the European Union have begun to intervene and internationalize the issue, which the Turkish ambassador considers a mistake. “Regional countries must solve their problems on their own initiative and stand up for them. This is what we are trying to do together with Rubinyan right now.”

Serdar Kilic stressed that substantial steps are being taken within the framework of the normalization process. One of these is that soon bilateral air freight transportation between Armenia and Turkey will commence. Kilic supports the view that the process of establishing lasting peace and stability in the region goes through the Armenia-Turkey normalization process. The establishment of stable foundations for the relations between Armenia and the West also depends on the success of the Turkey-Armenia process.

“If an increase in the standard of living and prosperity is expected in Armenia, then the way to achieve that is the normalization of relations with Turkey. Now, imagine we have two border crossings, one for railway, the other for road. If they are opened, Yerevan is situated in front of the Alijan border crossing. Gyumri is located opposite the Akyaq border point intended for the railway… Given the economic sanctions against Russia and considering the existing trade issues with Armenia, this could have a significant impact on the standard of living of the Armenian people,” he added.