The Turkish Cypriot mayor of occupied Nicosia, Mehmet Harmanci, has called for a new vehicle crossing point during a visit to the Green Line with Nicosia Mayor Charalambos Prountzos and UN Special Representative Colin Stewart.
According to an announcement by the “municipality of northern Nicosia”, officials discussed potential new crossing points to improve mobility between the divided city’s communities. The meeting included representatives from the Nicosia Master Plan team, who assessed at-risk historical buildings and infrastructure needs for flood prevention.
Harmanci highlighted that the buffer zone, uninhabited for decades, contains both war remnants and cultural heritage sites dating back nearly a millennium, alongside a natural habitat requiring protection. “All these elements must be considered in any new buffer zone initiatives”, he said.
He rejected preconditions linking the opening of a Nicosia vehicle crossing to other crossing points elsewhere, suggesting the Ledra Palace crossing could be opened for limited vehicle use, particularly for those travelling south regularly for education and healthcare.
The Turkish Cypriot mayor plans to meet with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar to discuss new crossing points and cooperation on protecting shared cultural heritage.
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