Turkic world among first to offer help after deadly quakes: Erdogan

The Turkic world has been among the many first to assist after the lethal February 6 earthquakes in southern Türkiye, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan mentioned.

“We called for international help. The Turkic world was among the first to help. You did not leave us alone in our most difficult moment,” Erdogan mentioned on Thursday on the opening speech of the extraordinary summit of leaders of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) on the presidential advanced within the capital Ankara.

“Our beloved nation will never forget your support,” he added. 

“We will once again show at the highest level that the Turkic world is of one heart and band together,” Erdogan additional mentioned.

On February 6, the magnitude 7.7 and seven.6 quakes struck 11 provinces — Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa, claiming the lives of almost 50,000 folks.

More than 13.5 million folks in Türkiye have been affected by the devastating quakes, in addition to many others in northern Syria.

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Multilateral cooperation and coordination

During the assembly, whose theme is Disaster-Emergency Management and Humanitarian Assistance, the leaders will elaborate on multilateral cooperation and coordination mechanisms within the struggle in opposition to disasters, and maintain consultations on present challenges within the area.

The OTS, previously referred to as the Turkic Council, is a world group comprising distinguished unbiased Turkic international locations that work collectively to raise relations and union amongst themselves.

Its members are Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, whereas EU state Hungary, Turkmenistan, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus have observer standing.

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Source: AA