Armenia has temporarily opened the Margara-Alican border crossing with Turkey for 10 days to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Syria, according to The Armenian Report.
The Margara-Alican border checkpoint will operate for 10 days from March 21 to March 31 specifically for aid deliveries, according to a government statement.
Officials said Armenian and Syrian representatives reached an agreement to coordinate Armenia’s humanitarian assistance efforts.
Turkey closed its border with Armenia on April 3, 1993, during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The closure was primarily in solidarity with Azerbaijan after Armenian forces took control of the Kelbajar region, one of seven Azerbaijani districts surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh territory.
The Margara checkpoint on the Armenia-Turkey border has remained closed for decades due to ongoing geopolitical tensions.
The Armenian government remains hopeful that past agreements with Turkey, including the commitment to open the border for third-country nationals and diplomatic passport holders, will eventually be realized.
Armenian and Turkish special envoys Ruben Rubinyan and Serdar Kılıç reached an agreement in July 2022 to open border crossings for third-country nationals and diplomatic passport holders, with implementation expected “as soon as possible,” according to official statements.
Armenia has completed preparations at its Margara checkpoint, investing 1 billion drams ($2.5 million) in renovations, officials said. Armenian border guards replaced Russian personnel at the crossing as of March 1.
Ankara, however, continues to link progress on all matters to the normalization of Armenia–Azerbaijan relations, stating that the border will only open after a peace agreement is signed with Azerbaijan.
“The opening of the Margara checkpoint would be a game changer and a significant confidence-building measure between the two countries. Unfortunately, Turkey has yet to implement the agreement reached in 2022,” a senior Armenian official told the Hürriyet Daily News in Yerevan this month.