(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) The European Commission's President Ursula von der Leyen
announced Wednesday that the EU is planning to host a donor
conference in March to collect international aid for Türkiye and
Syria to help them following two massive earthquakes which took
place on Monday, trend reports citing daily sabah .
'We are now racing against the clock to save lives together.
Soon we will provide relief aid, together. Türkiye and Syria can
count on the EU,' von der Leyen wrote on Twitter.
The EU said the conference would be held early next month in
Brussels in coordination with Turkish authorities 'to mobilise
funds from the international community in support for the people'
of both countries.
'No one should be left alone when a tragedy like this hits a
people,' von der Leyen said in a statement.
The event is aimed at coordinating the international response to
the disaster and 'will be open to EU Member States, neighbouring
countries, UN members' and international lenders, the bloc
said.
The European Union was swift to dispatch rescue teams to Türkiye
after massive magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes struck the country
on Monday close to the border with Syria.
On Wednesday, Damascus made an official plea to the EU for help,
the bloc's commissioner for crisis management said.
Now that Damascus has made the move, through the EU's Civil
Protection Mechanism that coordinates aid, Janez Lenarcic said the
commission was asking European countries 'to respond favourably to
this request.'
The participants in the EU mechanism comprise the 27 EU
countries plus eight neighboring non-EU nations that include Norway
and Türkiye.
The European Union sent 1,150 rescuers and 70 rescue dogs to
Türkiye in the wake of Monday's powerful quakes.
At least 9,057 people were killed and 52,000 others were injured
in 10 provinces of Türkiye after two strong earthquakes on Monday
jolted the southern part of the country.
The earthquakes also rocked several neighboring countries in the
region, including Lebanon and Syria.
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