Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan thanked Russian leader Vladimir Putin and leaders of several other countries for their support and assistance to the republic in fighting forest fires.
"On behalf of my country, I would like to express special thanks to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez for their continued support from the very first moment [of the fires]," Erdogan wrote on Telegram Tuesday. He also "thanked the leaders of Iran, Qatar, Croatia and Ukraine for their strong support."
"On behalf of my people, I would like to say thank you to all the friendly countries and organizations that have expressed their condolences to us, their willingness to help, who have sent us aid. I hope we will overcome this difficult period in the very near future," he wrote. Erdogan's Telegram also published an infographic with images of the flags of more than 70 countries and ten international organizations to which Turkey expresses its gratitude for their assistance.
Powerful forest fires began in the republic six days ago. They engulfed a number of areas on the coast where resorts are located, including in the provinces of Antalya and Mugla. Firefighters are still trying to cope with the disaster in a number of areas, although they have managed to localize most of the fires. According to Turkey's Office of Emergency Situations, the number of victims of the natural disaster reached eight, more than 850 people were affected.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS