How and Why Did the Change in Mood Suddenly Occur?

The newspaper "Fact" reports that on June 18, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a telephone conversation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Apart from mutual congratulations on the occasion of Kurban Bayram and the upcoming Vardavar, the holiday of the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ, as well as Erdoğan's condolences regarding the recent floods in Northern Armenia, a notable part of the message is this segment: "The leaders emphasized their political will for the complete normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey without any preconditions."

What stands out immediately is not only the softening of Erdoğan's tone but also the formulation "without any preconditions." Let's not forget that until recently, there was no shortage of prerequisites and conditions—from normalizing relations with Azerbaijan to dismantling the statue of Nemesis, refraining from mentioning the Armenian Genocide, opening the so-called "Zangezur corridor," changing the coat of arms, amending the Constitution, and so on. And now... "without preconditions."

What is behind such a change in the Turkish side's mood? Several experts highlighted two important circumstances in conversations with us. First, it is evident that significant steps are being taken by one side— the United States and the EU—towards taking control in the region, while on the other side are Russia and Iran, meaning that the Turks find themselves in a position of being "out of the game."