Truckers block Turkish border: Kapitan Andreevo and Lesovo shut to lorries today
Bulgaria's foreign ministry expects both crossings to be fully closed to trucks in both directions today. Cars and buses should not be affected.
Symbolic image · Photo: Paju~commonswiki / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Freight traffic on the Bulgarian-Turkish border is set to grind to a halt today. Truck drivers have imposed a blockade at the Kapıkule–Kapitan Andreevo and Hamzabeyli–Lesovo crossings on the Turkish exit side, Bulgaria's foreign ministry said on Wednesday evening, BTA reported. The ministry's situation centre expects both crossings to be fully blocked to trucks in both directions on Thursday.
Cars and buses are not expected to be affected. The ministry advised travellers to use alternative routes where possible and to strictly follow instructions from Turkish authorities until traffic is back to normal. Anyone needing help can contact the Bulgarian consulate general in Edirne or the situation centre in Sofia.
The ministry did not give the drivers' reasons. On Wednesday, Transport Minister Georgi Peev had held an urgent call with his Turkish counterpart Abdulkadir Uraloğlu about the build-up of trucks at the border and possible quick fixes at Kapitan Andreevo, according to BTA. The crossing is one of the main freight routes between the EU and Turkey.