City Council of Kars decided by a majority vote to demolish the monument dedicated to the Armenian-Turkish friendship, branded by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as “monstrous”. According to the mayor of Kars Nevzat Bozkus, 19 out of 23 deputies voted for the removal of the monument. The demolition of the monument will be carried out in phases, Turkish Milliyet daily reports.

As Armenian News-NEWS.am reported earlier, during his visit to Kars, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the monument “monstrous” and ordered to demolish it.

Former Mayor of Kars Naif Alibeyoglu has always stood for the opening of the Armenia-Turkey border without any preconditions and for this purpose organized a collection of signature in Kars. On his initiative, a large monument was put to represent the Armenian-Turkish friendship and peace. However, Alibeyoglu was defeated in the mayoral elections in 2009. The unfinished monument was put near the old Armenian district of Kars.