Turkey and Armenia in Historic Handshake on Soccer Pitch

Scrambling to reconcile: On Sept. 6, after a century of enmity, the Turkish national team met the Armenian national team in a historic World Cup qualifying match in the Armenian capital while the two countries' heads of state watched together. (Photo by © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia)

In 1977, Egypt’s Anwar Sadat went to Jerusalem and spoke to the Israeli Knesset, ending 30 years of war between Israel and Egypt. In 1993, Israel’s Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat shook hands on the White House lawn, opening the way to a two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians.

And on Saturday, Turkish President Abdullah Gul traveled to Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, at Armenian President Serge Sargsyan’s invitation, and attended a soccer match between Turkey and Armenia.

It was that big—the first-ever soccer match between the two countries, the first-ever time the Turkish and Armenian heads of state have shaken hands, and certainly the first time the Turkish national anthem was played in the Armenian capital, in front of 35,000 Armenians, while the Turkish flag flew high above the stadium. The fans booed their hearts out, but that was besides the point. "I believe my visit has demolished a psychological barrier in the Caucasus," Gul said. That was the point.

That, and the sound of Russian tanks crushing nearby Georgia, which was a wake-up call for Armenia to make nice with its other neighbors.

Read a full analysis of the Turkey-Armenia breakthrough: "How Turkey and Armenia Reconciled."