The key facts

  • Hovhanyan backed the rapprochement between Ankara and Yerevan and expressed hope for the borders to open soon
  • Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic relations, and the land border has been closed since 1993; the normalization process was launched in late 2021
  • The Diyarbakir community numbers about 60–65 people; restoration of the Surp Giragos and Surp Sarkis churches is underway

Support for Normalization

A senior representative of the Armenian church foundation in the Turkish province of Diyarbakir voiced support for the ongoing normalization process between Ankara and Yerevan. 'We view the ongoing rapprochement between Armenia and Turkey very positively,' said Hovhannes Gafur Hovhanyan, vice president of the Surp Giragos Armenian church foundation, in an interview with Anadolu. According to him, as the number of such visits and events grows, friendship between the two countries will strengthen, and he expressed hope that 'the borders will open soon.'

Context of the Visit and the Negotiation Process

The statement was made during a visit by seven Turkish and seven Armenian journalists to the Surp Giragos church in the historic Sur district of Diyarbakir as part of an EU-funded media tour aimed at supporting normalization between Turkey and Armenia. The two countries have no diplomatic relations, and the land border has been closed since 1993. The normalization process was launched in late 2021: retired Turkish ambassador Serdar Kilic and Deputy Speaker of the Armenian Parliament Ruben Rubinyan were appointed as special envoys. In May, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said that technical and bureaucratic work on opening the border continues, although preparations for direct trade have been completed. In early May, Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz visited Armenia, where a memorandum on the joint restoration of the historic Ani Bridge — a medieval structure across the border — was signed. Last month, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan discussed advancing normalization, strengthening trade and economic ties, and improving regional transport links.

The Community and the Surp Giragos Church

According to Hovhanyan, the local Armenian community of Diyarbakir numbers about 60–65 people, but community life around the church is active. Since there is no permanent clergyman, about 8–10 services are held each year on major religious holidays. Hovhanyan described Surp Giragos as an 800-year-old church and the largest Armenian temple in the Middle East; it attracts Armenians from Armenia as well as from the diaspora in Europe and the US. After decades of disuse, comprehensive restoration work, initiated by the local foundation and in subsequent years supported by Turkish state institutions, including the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, allowed the church to be officially opened for worship. Later, the church was damaged during the 2015 clashes in Sur involving the PKK terrorist group, was restored with funds from the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change under the coordination of the Directorate General of Foundations, and was reopened for worship seven years later.

Restoration of Surp Sarkis

The foundation's second church — the roughly 500-year-old Surp Sarkis in the Alipasha quarter — fell into disrepair due to the lack of parishioners and was additionally damaged in the February 2023 earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaras. Restoration began in 2024 thanks to a grant from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. 'Surp Sarkis lay in ruins for almost a century. We have made significant progress and have largely completed the structural work on the main building,' Hovhanyan noted, calling on entrepreneurs, philanthropists and the public for further support. 'A great church is being saved,' he added.