Discussions have been held regarding the opening of more border crossing points, Yeniduzen reports.
According to a report by Greek Cypriot daily Haravgi, a delegation headed by President of the “Committee of Border Municipalities and Semi-Occupied Municipalities” in Cyprus, Andros Karayannis, and the Mayor of Derinya, met with Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Christodoulides at the presidency.
In a statement made after the meeting Karayannis said that the south’s government approved the opening of new crossing points that improve communication and contacts between the two communities, and that Christodoulides clarified that the government’s proposal was that the opening of the Gaziler crossing in Kiracıköy should be the first, followed by other crossing points, including the Pirgo-Dillirga area and and some crossing points in Nicosia.
Karayannis noted that in addition to the problems observed at the existing crossing points, such as traffic congestion, also on Christodoulides’ agenda were some of the daily problems faced by “border municipalities and semi-occupied municipalities [meaning communities divided by the buffer zone]”, such as fires in and near the buffer zone.
According to a statement released by the Committee, the opening of the Gaziler-Kiracıköy crossing, as well as the opening of two crossing points for pedestrians within the walls of Nicosia and a crossing point for vehicles in the east of Nicosia were also discussed during the meeting.
The statement said that Christodoulides noted the mayor’s proposals and said that he would take them forward for technical examination, while Christodoulides said that the government was in favour of opening crossing points where they would serve to reduce traffic and serve the contact between the communities.
The newspaper added that Christodoulides said that the government was making efforts to increase the provision of incentives for housing development in the areas neighbouring the buffer zone.
