“Both Turkish top-ranking officials and international lawyers have repeatedly stated that Turkey will be the main beneficiary of the Armenian-Turkish protocols,” Vahan Hovhannisyan, Head of the ARF(D) parliamentary faction, told reporters. “An interesting poll has been conducted in Turkey. 70% of the Turkish population was against the Armenian-Turkish protocols when the process started, whereas 70% are for them now. It means that propaganda is rather effective there, and the Turkish society now understands they will gain,” Hovhannisyan said.

“They will just try to squeeze some more drops from a squeezed orange by holding wide-ranging discussions on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue – as a precondition. It will cause some objections to or reservations concerning the protocols. I cannot yet say anything, but it is obvious that they will try to reap dividends from the propaganda, which is unlikely in our case — our officials state it would be showing weakness to respond to Turkey. So remaining silent like a cat is a sign of strength,” Hovhannisyan said.

As to the opinion voiced in Turkey that, after the border has been reopened, Armenian may purchase land plot in Turkey and whether the Armenian Government may implement such programs, Hovhannisyan said: “The Armenian authorities can, but the incumbent cannot.” According to him, “it is not so easy to go to Turkey and purchase all the lands belonging to us under the Treaty of Sèvres, as clear restrictions are in effect in Turkey.”