Director of Support to Armenia-Turkey Rapprochement project Arthur Ghazaryan is confident that closed borders must not become impediment for development of trade-economic relations between two countries.

“Two countries businesses’ lobbying can result in understanding of political forces to decide on opening it,” Ghazaryan said July 22 during business-to-business meeting hosted by USTID and Eurasia Partnership Foundation.

A delegation from Van, a city situated on historical territories of Western Armenia, including 27 businessmen arrived in Yerevan on a working visit headed by director of Van branch of TURSAB, Van Trade and Industry Chamber board member Abdullah Tuncdemir.

Among perspective branches for bilateral cooperation the project director pointed out such spheres as tourism, industry, transport, IT, agriculture, textile industry and construction. “Creation of joint ventures would be the best model of cooperation,” he said.

As Ghazaryan said, today Armenia’s import from Turkey ($300 mln.) several times exceeds its export ($160 thous.). “It is well worth to smooth over this misbalance,” he added.

At the end of the meeting the parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding on creation of “Association of Armenian and Turkish tourist companies”.