Armenia and Turkey have agreed to simplify the visa application process starting January 1, 2026, for holders of diplomatic, service, and special passports. The relevant decision was published on Monday, December 29, on the website of the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and on the Turkish Foreign Ministry’s page on the social network X.

From next year, holders of such passports from both countries will be able to obtain free electronic visas. “In this regard, Armenia and Turkey once again reaffirm their commitment to continuing the process of normalizing relations between the two countries with the aim of achieving full normalization without any preconditions,” the statement by the foreign ministries said.

There are no diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey, and the border between the two countries has remained closed since 1993. This is largely due to Turkey’s refusal to recognize the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire in 1915. According to historians’ estimates, between 800,000 and 1.5 million Armenians living in Turkey were killed at that time.

However, in recent years relations between the two countries have begun to normalize. In early summer 2025, the leaders of the two countries, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nikol Pashinyan, held a meeting in Istanbul. Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan called it a historic event, stating that it was “the first visit by an Armenian leader to Turkey at such a level.”

In 2023, Pashinyan also visited Turkey, traveling to Ankara for Erdoğan’s inauguration. According to Yerevan, the current visit was necessary not only for normalizing relations with Turkey, but also for resolving the conflict with Baku.