Epress.am News from Armenia
Van Industry and Trade Chamber (VATSO) President Zahir Kandaşoğlu said the border with Armenia should be reopened to develop the eastern province’s economy.
In an interview with the Anatolia news agency reported by Today’s Zaman, Kandaşoğlu pledged that they, as Van businessmen, would provide employment for 50,000 people in the city if the Armenian border that Turkey closed is reopened. He said the city will attract a large number of tourists if the border is opened again. He indicated that before the border was closed — the city which at the time had a population of 80,000 — was attracting 150,000 tourists annually.
Umut Akay, chair of the Akay Grup, which is continuing to construct a $15 million luxury hotel, Van Rescate, near Van Lake, is also of the same view with regard to the Armenian border. Speaking to Anatolia, he reiterated that the city hosted tens of thousands of tourists in the 1990s before the border was closed, and the tourism sector suffered a major blow from the border closing as well as terrorist activities. However, he said they are working tirelessly to bring back those “golden years” of tourism to the city by making huge investments.