The road connecting the buffer zone village of Pyla to the nearby village of Arsos, which is located in the north, will “definitely be completed”, Turkish Cypriot Pergamos mayor Bulent Bebek said.

Speaking to news website Haber Kibris, he said the United Nations “attempted to block the construction of the road”, before stressing the importance of the road to Turkish Cypriots living in the area.

“The road is being built to provide access for the Turks of Pyla to their homes – people who are under pressure from the Greek Cypriot side. Only 500 metres of road remain, and this section is in the buffer zone. We are currently waiting, but this road will definitely be completed,” he said.

The situation in Pyla was brought to the fore two years ago, when the Turkish Cypriot authorities unilaterally announced their intention to build a road from Arsos through the buffer zone to the village.

The Turkish Cypriot side had insisted the road would be built for “humanitarian purposes”, to ensure safe and quick passage for those living in the village to and from the north.

However, the Greek Cypriot side expressed fears that construction of the road may allow Turkish forces to strengthen their position in the Mesaoria plain, and pointed to the existence of a building on the road which they believe to resemble a military outpost.

The UN had declared unilateral construction of the road to be “unauthorised” and stated their intention to block its construction, manning the buffer zone the following day.

However, Turkish Cypriot personnel entered the buffer zone the following day, forcing their way past UN peacekeepers. One peacekeeper was punched in the face and multiple vehicles were rendered “undriveable” after being “violently pushed back” during the incident.

A mutual understanding was reached between Cyprus’ two sides and the UN in October 2023, with that mutual understanding foreseeing that the road be built with a Turkish Cypriot checkpoint to be stationed north of the buffer zone and another checkpoint located within the buffer zone.

In addition, 400 plots of land north of Pyla were set to be turned into residential properties, while a large solar farm was set to be built in a vacant area northwest of the village.

However, just weeks later, the UN requested that works be put on hold after reports surfaced in the Turkish Cypriot media that Greek Cypriot construction workers had “encroached on TRNC territory”, while Bebek at the time said soldiers and police had been mobilised in the area to prevent anyone from entering.

A total of 21 months have passed since the works were put on hold, with no works in the area having since resumed.