Turkey is indeed a neighbor of the South Caucasus, but it is not part of the South Caucasus itself, nor is the European Union. But how can Turkey and the European Union play a positive role in the South Caucasus? First of all, it is necessary to ensure connectivity with the South Caucasus. Ruben Rubinyan, Deputy Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Special Representative of Armenia for the Normalization of Relations with Turkey, stated this during the Yerevan Dialogue 2026 international forum Tuesday in the Armenian capital on Tuesday.

There are railways, highways, and other infrastructure that connect Turkey with Georgia and Azerbaijan, but a vital link is missing. Armenia does not have a direct railway connection with the European Union, because so far it has not had the opportunity to establish railway communication between Armenia and Turkey, and therefore with the European Union. If this were to happen, it would create huge opportunities for Armenia, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and the European Union, Rubinyan noted.

He added that the lifting of transit restrictions by Azerbaijan to Armenia would have been impossible without Georgia’s participation, because goods entering Armenia from Kazakhstan and Russia were passing through the territory of Azerbaijan, and then Georgia. And Armenia is very grateful to its Georgian friends for this.

As per Rubinyan, external players can be useful, but they can also be not so useful, and the world is full of examples of both. The second example has been encountered more often recently, he added, but expressed a belief that the very fact that Armenians, Georgians, Azerbaijanis, Turks, and representatives of the European Union have gathered in Yerevan means that we are on the right track. Ruben Rubinyan said he is absolutely convinced that both the European Union and Turkey will play a very positive role in the South Caucasus in the coming years, months, weeks, or maybe days.