Harmanci calls for Ledra Palace to be open to civilian cars
Turkish Cypriot Nicosia mayor Mehmet Harmanci on Thursday called for the capital’s Ledra Palace crossing point to be opened to civilian road traffic.
At present, only pedestrians and diplomatic vehicles can pass through the crossing point and Harmanci suggested that vehicles belonging to people who are crossing either for education or for health reasons be allowed to use the crossing point.
Additionally, he called for a new crossing point to be opened elsewhere in the capital, saying it is a “great need, both in terms of facilitating crossings and in terms of easing traffic in the city.”
“The opening of crossing points in other regions, as requested by the Greek Cypriot leadership, should not be a precondition for the opening of a new crossing point for vehicles in Nicosia,” he added, saying Nicosia has already been “held captive” by such requests and preconditions “for years”.
He said this is “unacceptable for Nicosia” and expressed his hope that “this attitude will change with the new environment for negotiations which has emerged in recent days.”
He then announced that he is set to meet Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar on Monday to discuss the matter.
Both Tatar and President Nikos Christodoulides had agreed at last month’s informal dinner with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to hold future meetings to discuss the opening of more crossing points.
In Nicosia, the main location which has been touted thus far has been the village of Mia Milia on the city’s eastern edge. Tatar had said last month he was “ready” to open a new crossing point in Mia Milia and said he had discussed the matter with the north’s ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel after the informal dinner.
To this end, he said the opening of a new crossing point in Mia Milia “will be a very positive development for increasing trade”.
He also said such a crossing point will “ease the traffic congestion” at and around the Ayios Dhometios crossing point.
“The opening of a crossing point at Mia Milia is on the agenda. It would be right to opene up an area of movement which would be beneficial to both peoples” on the island, he said.
Aside from Mia Milia, the village of Pyroi between Ercan (Tymbou) airport and Larnaca and Kokkina, the Turkish Cypriot exclave between the villages of Pomos and Kato Pyrgos, have both been mentioned as locations for potential new crossing points.
Tatar had pushed for the opening of a crossing point in Mia Milia in June last year, but he had said the proposal met a stumbling block when the Greek Cypriot side suggested that a crossing point be opened in Kokkina.
He had at the time poured cold water on the idea of a crossing point in Kokkina, saying that it is not possible to open a crossing point there as it is a “sacred area” and functions as a military base.
Last week, the Athienou municipality declared “its unwavering position that it will not accept the opening of any crossing points if those openings do not include Pyroi”.