On Sunday, the first tourist cruise from the city of Misurata, in southwest Libya, arrived in the state of Izmir in western Turkey, after a hiatus of about 25 years.
The port of Sanjak received the ship “Kevalay Queen” as part of the trip that is being conducted in partnership between the Koronfel Group, the Kevalay Tourism Company, and the Libyan Iron and Steel Company.
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On its first voyage, the ship transported 107 passengers from Misurata to Izmir. It was received by Morteza Qarnfil, head of the Turkish-Libyan Business Council at the Council on Foreign Economic Relations.
In a press statement, Kronfel, chairman of the Kronfel Group, said he was happy to resume passenger cruises between Turkey and Libya.
He pointed out that this step was taken thanks to the memorandum of understanding concluded between the two countries two years ago, related to the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction areas in the Mediterranean.
He stated that flights between Turkey and Libya were halted in 1996 due to the lack of great demand for them.
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The ship “Kevalay Queen” will carry passengers, cargo, and vehicles.
He explained that the ship includes 500 beds, 700 seats and is capable of transporting about 520 vehicles, and it arrived in Izmir within 3 days, but there was a delay of one day due to a storm that hit Izmir.
He pointed out the possibility of expanding the scope of these trips in the coming period to include more cities such as Marmaris, Antalya, Istanbul, and Bursa to contribute to tourism and trade.
He confirmed that the trips will take place once a week, and there is a plan to increase their number in the summer months.
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In turn, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Libyan Kevalay Company, Mustafa Al-Mujai, expressed his happiness about the strengthening of relations between the two countries.
Al-Mujai said that the Turkish authorities have provided all facilities for launching cruises, which will contribute to developing relations further.
And on Wednesday, the Libyan Minister of Transport, Mohamed Salem Al-Shoubi, said during the inauguration of the first flights that the government had issued the necessary legislation.
To reduce the cost price for the benefit of the citizen/passenger to facilitate mobility opportunities and enjoy the means of maritime transport between Libya and Turkey.
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Turkey and Libya have distinguished relations in all fields and many cooperation agreements between them.
