CIVILNET

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will travel to Turkey on Wednesday to attend the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, his spokesperson Melanya Harutyunyan told CivilNet.

The conference kicked off on Monday and will run through the end of next week. A summit of world leaders is scheduled for November 11-12 to discuss climate action and international cooperation.

Pashinyan previously visited the country on two occasions: In June 2023 to attend the inauguration of President Recep Erdoğan and in June 2025 to hold negotiations with Erdoğan and meet with the local Armenian community.

The visit comes as Yerevan and Ankara continue efforts to normalize relations despite having no diplomatic ties. Last Friday, Pashinyan said the two countries could establish diplomatic relations “soon.”

Despite recognizing Armenia’s independence, Turkey has kept its land border with Armenia closed since 1993, linking its reopening to a final peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Armenian officials have recently criticized Ankara's continued linkage of the two processes.

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Armenia is committed to pursuing a European future, Gert Jan Koopman, the European Commission's Director-General for Enlargement and the Eastern Neighbourhood, told CivilNet on Friday.

“Armenia has clearly embarked on a European path. It's still early days, but [Yerevan] is clearly determined and we're working very closely with the government to facilitate that. We have a task force with [Armenia's] deputy prime minister, and things have moved pretty [...] quickly after some difficulties,” Koopman said in a comment to CivilNet.

The official met with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Yerevan last week and again in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss EU–Armenia relations and Armenia's exports to the bloc, according to readouts from the prime minister's office.

“I had the pleasure of meeting [with] the prime minister earlier this week. [...] The country really is reorienting quickly. It is ultimately, of course, for the country itself to [decide whether to] submit a membership application,” Koopman told CivilNet.

He also rejected the suggestion that Armenia's progress towards European integration was linked to Georgia's own EU accession prospects.

“The answer is no,” he said.

His remarks contrast with comments Pashinyan made earlier this week. In an interview with the Euronews publication on Tuesday, the prime minister was asked to identify one key commitment related to EU accession. He replied: “To support Georgia. For Armenia, Georgia’s success is extremely important.”

Speaking before the European Parliament in March, Pashinyan said the breakdown of political dialogue between Georgia and the European Union posed a serious challenge to Armenia's European integration.