Turkey Closed Airspace For Yerevan-Bound German Military Aircraft In Late July - Reports

Turkey in late July did not allow a Germany military aircraft, which was en route to Armenia's Yerevan, to enter its airspace, the German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 28th August, 2020) Turkey in late July did not allow a Germany military aircraft, which was en route to Armenia's Yerevan, to enter its airspace, the German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Friday.

According to Spiegel, Turkish air traffic controllers, without explanations, refused to issue a permit for the German plane to fly via the country's airspace, and thus the Airbus 310 was forced to return to Cologne.

The magazine specified that the plane was supposed to transfer Armenian soldiers to Germany for military training. The Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces, reportedly believes that the final destination was the reason behind Turkey's decision to block the way for the aircraft.

Turkey has maintained its position, and the Bundeswehr was forced to choose a longer route via Russia for another flight to Armenia in mid-August, Spiegel continued.

The relations between Armenia and Turkey have long been complicated due to a number of factors, in particular, Ankara's support of Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as well as Turkey's sharp reaction to the process of international recognition of tragic events of 1915 as the Armenian genocide by the Ottoman Empire. Two countries have no diplomatic relations, and the border is closed since 1993.