A panel discussion on “The economic Significance of the Armenian-Turkish Border” was held recently. The speakers were economic experts and representatives of government agencies. 
The discussion was organized by ermenihaber.am  website, a specialized media platform on Armenian-Turkish issues, with the aim of helping RA citizens understand the economic importance of the Armenian-Turkish border. 

 

The discussion consisted of two parts: the first recorded the economic consequences of the closed border, and the second discussed the prospects for its possible opening.  
In his opening speech, Mkhitar Nazarian, Editor-in-Chief of ermenihaber.am, briefly presented the current realities around the closed border. He then put forward issues of economic interests, risks and expectations for discussion. 

 
Movses Dzavaryan, former Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, as well as General Director of  Greenland Investment Company, noted that if the border is opened, Turkey will be of great importance to us, primarily as a transit zone.  
“In my opinion, opening the border will be even more significant from a humanitarian perspective so that neighboring populations can communicate with each other. ”

 

Gagik Makaryan, Head of the Socio-Economic Development Center, advocating for the opening of the border, emphasized that Armenia’s readiness in all aspects and with all mechanisms must precede it. 
“Now we import many goods from Turkey or export them to Turkey through the territory of Georgia. Transportation costs and commission fees will be significantly reduced when opening the border. It would be desirable for our Ministry of Economy to make this calculation.”
 

 
Albert Hayrapetyan, Head of the Economic Research Department of the Ministry of Economy, noted that there is an axiomatic truth in international economics: free trade promotes more efficient distribution of resources.  
“Once the border opens, we will have free trade with a country that is considered a member of the European Union Customs Union. Based on the predictions of the Asian Development Bank, Armenia’s GDP growth will amount to 30%, and the foreign trade deficit will be reduced by 30-50%. And according to World Bank estimates, export growth can lead to an increase in Armenia’s GDP of up to 38%.”
Hrant Mikaelyan, Head of the Institute of Armenian Studies, believes that there is a trade potential with Turkey, but it should not be overestimated in any case. According to the speaker, in case of opening the Armenian-Turkish border, the volumes of our exports to Turkey, as well as imports, may significantly increase. 

 
“But estimates that exports to Turkey could be 6% of Armenia’s exports, I don’t have such expectations. Frankly speaking, I don’t expect that there will be a big investment flow in case of opening the border either, because Armenia’s geographical position will not change in any case. The problem of delivering one container to Armenia is not only related to the closed border with Azerbaijan or Turkey but also to the difficulties of geographical location.”

Mher Martirosyan, Deputy Head of the Customs Control Department of the State Revenue Committee of the Republic of Armenia, touched upon the question of whether Armenia’s customs infrastructure is ready to serve the expected trade flows in case of opening the border.”  

“I can say that, yes, we are ready. We have customs infrastructure both inland and at the border. We have customs infrastructure both inside the country and at the border. Moreover, it is planned to create a large service center for foreign economic activity in the vicinity of Yerevan. We have already established infrastructure on the Margara border with Turkey and can serve trade flows. And there is still work to be done on the railway in Akhurik.”