By Tuvan Gumrukcu and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber

ANKARA/MOSCOW, (Reuters) – Turkey and Armenia said Friday that a first round in talks for more than ten year was positive and constructive. This raises the possibility of restoring ties and allowing borders to be reopened following decades of animosity.

Turkey has maintained no commercial or diplomatic ties since 1990s with its east neighbor. Moscow was the first time that relations were restored following a peace agreement in 2009. The deal was never signed and relations remain strained.

On Friday, the Turkish and Armenian foreign ministry said that they had held talks in a constructive and positive atmosphere. Both sides also stated their commitment to full normalisation of relations without conditions. The foreign ministers said that special envoys “exchanged preliminary views about the normalization process.”

They are at odds on many issues. Armenia claims 1.5 million were murdered in 1915.

Armenia claims that the 1915 massacres were genocide. This position is supported by some other countries, including the United States. Turkey acknowledges that Armenians in Ottoman Empire died in conflicts with Ottoman forces in World War One. However, it contests these figures and claims the killings weren’t systematic.

Tensions flared once again in 2020’s war for Nagorno Karabakh. Turkey accuses ethnic Armenian forces, claiming that they occupy land in Azerbaijan. Turkey called for an end to the hostilities, in order to gain greater control over the region.

The foreign ministers made similar statements but in separate declarations claiming that a new date and place for the next round would be determined later.

According to Turkish diplomat sources, the talks between the delegations lasted approximately 1.5 hours.

Russia’s TASS news agency quoted Armenia’s foreign minister as saying that on Thursday, it believed the talks would lead to establishment of diplomatic relations. It also stated that the negotiations could open up frontiers which have been closed between Armenia and Russia since 1993.

Thomas de Waal is a Senior Fellow at Carnegie Europe. He stated in November that opening Turkey’s borders and renovating the railways would bring economic benefits to Armenia. The routes can be used by trader from Turkey, Russia and Iran.

Mevlut Cavusoglu (Turkish Foreign Minister) stated that Turkey and Armenia would charter flights from Istanbul to Yerevan as part of the rapprochement. But, Turkey said it would work with Azerbaijan in coordination.

These flights will begin around February 1.

Turkey’s President Tayyip Turkey stated Thursday that Armenia should establish strong ties with Azerbaijan if normalisation efforts are to succeed.

No EASY BREAKTHROUGH

Analysts have stated that the negotiations would prove difficult despite the strong support for normalization from the United States. The United States hosts an Armenian diaspora. Turkey angered Turkey by labeling the 1915 massacres genocide last year.

Emre, the London-based Eurasia Group director, stated that both sides would need to focus on quick delivery due to their old sensitivities. Russia was also expected to play a key role in this process, having brokered the Nagorno Karabah ceasefire.

Cavusoglu also stated that Russia was involved in the selection of the special envoys.

Peker stated that “the bigger challenge will be the question of historical reconciliation.” He also said that talks’ fate would hinge on Ankara’s acceptance that its ambitions must be re-evaluated.