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Armenian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anna Naghdalyan has reacted to the statements of Turkey over the alleged support for the fight against the coronavirus outbreak, the ministry’s press service reports.

Question: The Turkish side states that within the framework of the fight against COVID-19, Armenia asked Turkey for assistance, and Turkey is ready to provide that assistance. At the same time, the ambassador of China to Turkey was asked by the Foreign Ministry of Turkey to provide clarifications regarding the inscription on the aid boxes provided to Armenia. How would you comment on that?

Answer: We have already stated that Armenia undertakes consistent efforts to organize the return of its citizens facing difficult situations to their homeland, especially from countries severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, I should note that last Friday 73 of our citizens upon their request already returned from Turkey to Armenia. For this purpose, the Foreign Ministry of Armenia through its representatives interacted with relevant authorities of Turkey and Georgia. The cooperation with the Turkish side occurred exclusively within this framework, and out of this framework Armenia has not asked for any other assistance.

It is noteworthy that the framework of possible cooperation between the two countries is significantly limited, as a result of the ongoing land blockade imposed on Armenia by Turkey and of the absence of diplomatic relations, and thus it requires genuine goodwill and trust building.

Unfortunately, some statements made by the Turkish side in the context of fighting against COVID-19 do not contribute toward creating a depoliticized and humanitarian environment of cooperation. It is particularly regrettable, that these statements targeted  the assistance provided by the third country to Armenia by unnecessarily politicising and showing disrespect for the friendship between the peoples and their national symbols.