President Ersin Tatar received the Mayor of the Lefkoşa Turkish Municipality, Mehmet Harmancı, on Monday.

During the meeting, President Tatar expressed his satisfaction with Mayor Harmancı’s sensitivity regarding the crossing points in Lefkoşa and his visit on the matter.

Stating that he had raised the issue of congestion at the crossing points at the United Nations and that technical committees had brought the issue to the agenda, Tatar noted that although there are ongoing efforts at the Metehan crossing, there is still congestion at the other side due to the single-lane passage.

Noting that Metehan experienced the highest traffic intensity among the nine crossings on the island, he stressed that this crossing should be alleviated.

Tatar also reminded that during the informal meeting in New York in October, the crossing points were discussed, and the UN Secretary-General had urged the two leaders to address this issue and open up new opportunities in Cyprus.

“There is preparation for this opening. We brought up the issue of opening the Haspolat Crossing, especially for commercial vehicles, including taxis. The mutual passage of goods and materials for trade within the framework of the Green Line Regulation in the Industrial Zone would help ease the traffic congestion at Metehan. Haspolat could be a preferred crossing point due to its proximity to Larnaca and its distance to other areas. In order for this to happen, the other side has certain expectations from us. We are ready to discuss those as well. There are also some crossing points on the agenda. There is a security aspect to this matter, and these issues are being consulted with the relevant authorities” the President explained.

“Our common goal is for the Turkish Cypriot people to live freely, independently, and peacefully. We have stated that, until a final solution is reached, dialogue between the two sides should continue, and we are ready to discuss any issue that would benefit both peoples through cooperation within the framework of the two-state structure” he added.                                          …/3…

Stating that cooperation could be possible with the Greek Cypriot side on various issues, such as interconnection with the European Union via cables from Türkiye for electricity, irregular migration, water resource management, crime and related matters, as well as natural disasters like earthquakes, Tatar stated, “We are always ready for cooperation to ensure that constructive arrangements that benefit both peoples can be realized.”

The Mayor of the Lefkoşa Turkish Municipality, Mehmet Harmancı, said that he visited President Tatar to discuss the approaches to the crossing points in Lefkoşa, which were raised during the October meeting in New York.

Stressing the importance of increasing communication during such times, Harmancı underlined the need for preparation to ensure that the will to be shown is in everyone’s interest.

Also present at the meeting were the President’s Special Representative Güneş Onar and the Coordinator of Confidence-Building Measures and Bilateral Technical Committees, Seniha Birand Çınar.