Larnaca, Cyprus. Turkish Cypriot officials said they will send 20,000 doses of foot and mouth disease vaccine to Larnaca as the island’s southeast continues to battle an outbreak of the disease.
Vaccine shipment details
The north’s ‘agriculture minister’ Hüseyin Cavus said on Tuesday that the first 10,000 doses would be sent the same day, with the remaining doses to be sent “in line with demand,” according to the north’s public broadcaster BRT.
Warnings since December
Cavus said 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 said he had “shared serious concerns” at the time 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.
Call for coordination
Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman referenced the sending of vaccines during a press conference he held following his meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides.
“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.
How do you think authorities on both sides should coordinate their response to prevent further spread of the disease?
