A border gate between long-time foes, Turkey and Armenia, has been opened for the first time in 35 years to allow the transfer of aid to victims of the deadly earthquake in Turkey and Syria, the official Anadolu news agency reported. The information has also been confirmed by a diplomat.

Turkey’s special envoy for Armenia, Serdar Kilic, tweeted photos of trucks crossing the Alikhan checkpoint on the Turkish side of the Aras River, which separates the two countries.

Kilic, thanking Armenian officials, said that he will always remember the generous help that the people of Armenia sent to contribute to the relief of those affected by the earthquake in Turkey.

According to Anadolu, the crossing was last used to transport aid from the Turkish Red Crescent to earthquake-stricken Armenia in 1988.

Last year, Turkish and Armenian leaders met informally at a European summit after their Foreign Ministers’ meeting taking place in an attempt to mend relations.

Ankara has not had diplomatic or trade relations with Armenia since the 1990s. The two countries have been divided over a number of issues, including Nagorno-Karabakh and the events of 1915 during the Ottoman Empire, and the border between the two neighboring countries has been closed since 1993.

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