site.btaGreek Prefect Gives Guarantees That Roudozem-Xanthi Checkpoint Will Be Completed in 2017

Greek Prefect Gives Guarantees That Roudozem-Xanthi Checkpoint Will Be Completed in 2017

Sofia, August 13 (BTA) - Giorgos Pavlidis, Prefect of the Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Region, gave guarantees to GERB Deputy Chairman Tsvetan Tsvetanov that the Roudozem-Xanthi checkpoint will be ready in 2017, GERB's press centre said.

Tsvetanov is quoted as saying that Pavlidis has made enormous efforts to ensure additional financing of the 45 million euro project. The funding under the crossborder programme amounted to 18 million euro, which made it necessary to seek financing under other programmes and then coordinate it with Brussels.

The construction of the route will be launched in 2016 and, hopefully, the connection with Greece via the new Elidje pass will be operational in 2017, Tsvetanov said quoted in the press release.

In his opinion the financial crisis in Greece will not be an obstacle to the project implementation.

At the talks the sides discussed the possibility for the passage of 55-seat buses via Makaza and 22-seat vehicles via the Zlatograd checkpoint.

"Yesterday I talked to Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov and Regional Development Minister Liliyana Pavlova. They gave assurances that best efforts are made to accelerate all relevant procedures, so that the extension of the Makaza checkpoint could be launched in late autumn or the early spring of 2016," Tsvetanov said.