Pashinyan urges ‘more concrete’ steps in Türkiye normalization

YEREVAN

Ankara and Yerevan should move their normalization process into a new phase, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said, urging the sides to take more tangible steps.

“Within the framework of our bilateral dialogue, the time has come for symbolic — and even non-symbolic, broader, and more concrete — steps to take place and I hope that they will happen,” Pashinyan said during a press briefing on Dec. 25.

He also said that the contacts with Türkiye should move into a new phase.

His remarks followed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s statement earlier this month that Türkiye will take “some symbolic steps” starting early 2026 as part of the ongoing normalization process with Armenia.

At a trilateral summit at the White House in August, Armenia and Azerbaijan, together with U.S. President Donald Trump, signed a declaration formally committing to end decades of conflict, reopen transport links and normalize relations.

With the peace deal signed, Yerevan has been moving toward normalizing relations not only with Baku but also with Türkiye.

That agreement also included the decision to establish the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), widely referred to as the Trump Route, linking Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave via Armenia.

Commenting on the peace efforts between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Pashinyan said Yerevan welcomed Baku’s decision to lift restrictions on the transit of goods to Armenia, adding that it would be only natural for his government to express its views on these developments.

Pashinyan also said he hoped steps would soon follow to boost bilateral trade, including Armenian exports to Azerbaijan.

“Armenia and the United States are preparing a document outlining the strategic framework of the TRIPP project, which both sides will need to approve in some format, after which the next step will begin,” he said.