Ruben Rubinyan, the Armenian Parliament’s vice speaker and the country’s special representative for normalization of ties with Türkiye, recently said the two countries are no longer in “railway deadlock,” referring to the revival of the Akhalkalaki-Kars railway.
Rubinyan was quoted by the Armenian media as saying that the normalization process has seen multiple developments recently, including direct trade between the countries and the opportunity to use the said railway. He stated that the end of the deadlock meant that they can extend beyond Georgia for exports.
Referring to the working group established for the reopening of the Gyumri-Kars railway, Rubinyan said, “We hope this railway will become operational as soon as possible, and we also expect the commitments that have been made to be fulfilled.”
During the tenure of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the two countries took significant steps for normalization.
In 2021, Türkiye’s former ambassador to Washington, Serdar Kılıç, was appointed as Türkiye’s special representative, while Rubinyan was appointed as Armenia’s counterpart.
