The EU and countries around the world offer their help in the face of the earthquake that has devastated Turkey and Syria

Numerous countries have already mobilized to offer their help to Turkey after the devastating earthquake that both this country and Syria suffered, with more than 600 deaths and thousands injured according to the latest estimates. Among them, Spain. “My solidarity with Turkey and Syria in the face of one of the biggest earthquakes in their history“, expressed the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, in a message posted on Twitter. The European Civil Protection Mechanism had previously requested the urgent dispatch of help in terms of urban search and rescue. A request to which our country has responded without delay.

The General Directorate of Civil Protection and Emergencies of the Ministry of the Interior has requested the urgent activation of the Military Emergency Unit and the Immediate Response Team of the Community of Madrid, the two organizations that have these urban search and rescue capabilities in Spain certified by the European Mechanism. At the same time, efforts are being made to have air transport available as soon as possible to be able to deploy these units on the ground. Likewise, the General Directorate of Civil Protection and Emergencies has called an emergency meeting with the Ministry of Defense, the Department of National Security and the Community of Madrid to coordinate this immediate dispatch to Turkey of search and rescue teams in urban areas.

Precisely along these lines, the European Commission is coordinating the dispatch of rescue teams from the rest of the Member States to join the efforts of local authorities in the search for survivors. The Crisis Management Commissioner, Janez Lenarcic, has pointed out on social networks that, after having activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the rescue teams from the Netherlands and Romania move to the affected area. For his part, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs of the EU, Josep Borrell, stressed that the bloc is “ready to help” the affected countries.

Russia, Ukraine and Israel offer their help

Likewise, the governments of Russia, Ukraine and Israel have offered their help to Turkey, although only Moscow has ruled on possible support for Damascus after the earthquake. Russian President Vladimir Putin has conveyed his “deep condolences” to his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and stressed that Russia “is prepared to give all necessary help” to the Turkish authorities, a message that he has also conveyed to the President of Syria, Bashar al Assad, to whom he has also communicated his “sincere condolences” for the “tragic consequences” of the earthquake.

For his part, the President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, has sent Erdogan his “sincere condolences” for the earthquake in the south of the country. “I wish a speedy recovery to all the victims. In these difficult times, we will be close to the Turkish people. We are prepared to give the necessary help to overcome the consequences of this disaster”, he pointed out in his account on the social network Twitter. In this line, the Israeli Foreign Minister, Eli Cohen, expressed his “deep regret by the “serious earthquake”.

“Our hearts go out to the victims and we wish the injured a speedy recovery. I have ordered the Israeli Foreign Ministry to lead a rapid aid program for Turkey to deal with this serious disaster,” he detailed. Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has reported that he has ordered the Army “prepare to give emergency help” and has pointed out that “the security forces are prepared to give all the necessary help”, at the same time that it has indicated that the Israeli rescue teams “accumulate a lot of experience over the years in disaster areas and in the mission of save lifes”.

More countries have joined the aid plans. Georgia, Turkey’s neighbor, and Kazakhstan, a country that is part of the Organization of Turkic States, have also offered their services to Ankara to alleviate the consequences of the serious earthquake. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has announced the Caucasian country’s readiness to provide “any necessary help” to neighboring Turkey, while Kazakhstan’s President Kasim-Yomart Tokáyev has also expressed readiness to offer adequate assistance to Turkey.

Also Azerbaijan has already announced that it will send 370 rescuers to Turkey to help that country in the rescue efforts. The plane with the staff of the Ministry for Emergencies will depart in the next few hours from the Adana airport, according to the instructions issued by the Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliev.