Friday, February 17 2023 10:03

ArmInfo.he two earthquakes that jolted Turkiye last week were also felt in Armenia "in every sense," Yerevan's envoy for normalization of relations with Ankara  said on Thursday.

 "Unfortunately, the pain we shared here brought us together, but we  hope that one day, not happiness and disaster, but mutual cooperation  will bring us together," Ruben Rubinyan told Anadolu during an  interview in the city of Adiyaman, where Armenian rescuers have  assisted in search and rescue operations.

Armenia's special envoy for the normalization of relations with  Turkey, Vice Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of  Armenia Ruben Rubinyan, in an interview with Anodolu, expressed hope  that "peace will always reign" in relations between the two  neighboring countries.

Noting that earthquakes are not something foreign to Armenians,  Rubinyan said both Turks and Armenians live in an earthquake zone.   "In such cases, there is only solidarity between societies. Armenia's  aid to Turkiye in the face of this disaster reflects the feelings of  the Armenian community," Rubinyan said.  Rubinyan also expressed his  condolences and solidarity with Turkiye, adding that he hoped they  can "achieve sustainable peace." Rubinyan arrived in Turkiye along  with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan on Wednesday, who held  a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in the  capital Ankara.  At least 36,187 people were killed by the two strong  earthquakes that jolted southern Turkiye on Feb. 6, the country's  disaster agency said on Thursday.

It should be noted that today at a government meeting, Armenian  Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, speaking about the results of his  visit to Turkey, noted that the authorities and the Turkish people  spoke positively about the work of Armenian rescuers and the  provision of humanitarian assistance. "I think it was an important  humanitarian step on our part," he said.

Speaking about the diplomatic results of his visit, Mirzoyan pointed  to the achievement of specific agreements. "There is a decision to  speed up the dialogue and the process of the final opening of the  borders," the minister said. During the visit, it was also stated  that the parties would restore the Ani bridge across the Akhuryan  River, located on the border of the two countries. In his turn, Prime  Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that long before the visit, Yerevan had  prepared a sketch for the restoration of the Ani bridge on the border  between Armenia and Turkey. <This could be a symbolic step>,  Pashinyan added.