Turkish Cypriots deliver 10,000 foot and mouth vaccines

A total of 10,000 doses of the foot and mouth disease vaccine sent to the Republic by the Turkish Cypriots have been delivered and received, the north’s ‘agriculture ministry’ said on Wednesday.

‘Minister’ Huseyin Cavus had said on Tuesday that a total of 20,000 doses were to be delivered, with the ‘ministry’ saying on Wednesday that the remaining 10,000 doses are to be delivered “in the coming days”.

Cavus had also said on Tuesday that he said that he had been warning the Republic of Cyprus’ authorities about the disease since December, when an outbreak was detected in the village of Ayios Sergios, between Famagusta and Trikomo.

He added that he had at the time “shared serious concerns” that the disease may have already spread to the Republic.

“The response we received for a long time was ‘there are no cases in our country’,” he said.

Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman also briefly referenced the sending of vaccines during a press conference he held his meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides no Tuesday.

“It cannot be that there is one thing in the north and another in the south. There is a risk of the disease spreading on both sides. Therefore, it is necessary that we act in coordination,” he said, adding that the matter would be handled by the relevant bicommunal technical committees.