Preparations begin for two new crossing points

The Greek Cypriot members of the technical committee on crossing points are expected to meet this week to begin preparations for the opening of two new crossings agreed by the island’s leaders on Monday. The full technical committee is scheduled to meet next week to draw up a plan outlining the work required before the crossings can open, with site visits and consultations with the United Nations expected to follow. President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman agreed on Monday to open two crossing points simultaneously, one south of Louroujina, near Larnaca, and the other south of Karavostasi, west of Lefka. According to the Cyprus News Agency, the existing road linking Kambos to the buffer zone near Karavostasi is unpaved, and its ownership status will need to be examined before the necessary upgrading works can be determined. Part of the proposed route also passes through the UN-controlled buffer zone, meaning consultations with the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (Unficyp) will be required. Preparations for the Louroujina-Lympia crossing are expected to be more straightforward, as the proposed route is shorter. Louroujina, the southernmost inhabited Turkish Cypriot village, would be connected to the Greek Cypriot village of Lympia. The second crossing would connect Karavostasi, on Morphou Bay, with Kambos, a village in the Troodos Mountains.