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Spokesman for the Armenian Foreign Ministry Vahan Hunanyan has answered several questions of Armenpress news agency about the Armenia-Turkey normalization process ahead of the first meeting between the Armenian and Turkish special envoys scheduled for January 14.

Question: What are the main objectives the Armenian side tends to achieve through the Armenia-Turkey dialogue?

Answer: Armenia's expectations from this dialogue, in fact, have not changed since the early 1990s. We expect that diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey will be established as a result of the process, and the border between the two countries, which was unilaterally closed by Turkey in the early 1990s, will be opened.

Question: It's been argued that by agreeing to launch a dialogue with Turkey, Armenia accepts the preconditions that Turkey has always put forward in the context of normalization of relations with Armenia. How would you comment on that?

Answer: The Republic of Armenia has repeatedly stated about its readiness to normalize relations with Turkey without any preconditions. In this regard, I should note  that Armenia’s approach has not changed; the same position is reflected in the 2021-2026 program of the Government of Armenia.

We have previously mentioned that in our contacts with international partners, we have repeatedly stressed the need to adhere to the principle of "no preconditions". In our opinion, the Turkish government also shares the approach of starting the dialogue without preconditions.

Question: The first meeting of the special representatives of the two countries of the Armenia-Turkey dialogue is scheduled for January 14 in Moscow. What is the format of the meeting? What are the expectations of the Armenian side from this meeting?

Answer: The meeting of the special representatives of Armenia and Turkey in Moscow will be hosted by the Russian side. In fact, this is an introductory meeting. It could hardly be expected to have tangible results as a result of one meeting, but it will mark the launch of the process.