The head of the American diplomacy Antony Blinken went to Turkey on Sunday to follow the humanitarian effort and announce 100 million dollars in additional aid, 14 days after the deadly earthquake of February 6, for which Ankara announced to arrest the majority researches.
“When you see the extent of the damage, the number of buildings, the number of apartments, the number of houses that have been destroyed, it will take a massive effort to rebuild and we are committed to supporting this effort,” said said Mr. Blinken, who flew in a helicopter over the devastated province of Hatay, in the south-east of the country.
“We are adding $100 million to help those in desperate need,” he said.
The United States deployed the day after the earthquake, which also struck northern Syria, several search and rescue teams in Turkey, approximately 200 people, and released a first tranche of $85 million in humanitarian aid.
Antony Blinken visited Incirlik air base in the south-east of the country, where he stopped between Munich and Ankara, where he is expected in the evening for a meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan scheduled before the earthquake.
It is from this base of Incirlik that part of the humanitarian aid, in particular American, is routed to the areas stricken by the earthquake, which is the worst disaster for contemporary Turkey which, according to a latest assessment, 40,689 deaths in this country alone.
The secretary of state was scheduled to meet with military and humanitarian officials who coordinate US aid.
First trip to Turkey
This is the US Secretary of State’s first trip to Turkey since taking office two years ago.
The two countries, allies in NATO, maintain sometimes tumultuous relations. Turkey describes in particular as “terrorist” the Syrian Kurds of the YPG (People’s Protection Units), spearhead of the fight, supported by an international coalition led by Washington, against the jihadists of the Islamic State.
Litigation also includes the potential sale of F-16 fighter jets promised by President Joe Biden to Turkey but which remains blocked by congressional opposition, and the Turkish blocking of the accession of Finland and the Sweden to NATO.
But the United States recognizes that their ally has a constructive role, particularly with regard to the war in Ukraine.
After Turkey, Mr. Blinken will complete his European tour in Athens where he will have a series of meetings on Monday evening and Tuesday with the authorities of this country, Turkey’s historic rival but also a partner in NATO.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Thursday that the earthquake “could be an opportunity” to redefine the hitherto stormy relations between Ankara and Athens, which was one of the very first European countries to dispatch teams of rescuers.
Almost the end of the search
Turkey announced on Sunday to stop the majority of research.
“In many provinces the search efforts are over. They are continuing in the provinces of Kahramanmaras and Hatay, in around forty buildings,” said Yunus Sezer, head of the government relief agency (Afad).
In addition to the more than 265,000 Turkish rescue workers, nearly 11,500 rescuers from abroad have joined the search and rescue efforts, according to the Foreign Ministry.
This earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 which devastated the south of the country and Syria killed nearly 45,000 people, including 40,689 dead in Turkey, according to the latest official report communicated by Afad on Sunday.
No new survivors have been cleared from the ruins for more than 24 hours after the rescue of a couple in Antakya, capital of Hatay province, on Saturday, 296 hours after the quake.
In the past three days, seven people have been pulled alive from the rubble, all in Antakya, including the couple’s child, who died shortly after being rescued.
“My cousin still hasn’t been found under the rubble. The research work must continue, at least his body must be found,” laments Husseyin Yavuz, bearded and with a scarred face, sitting in front of a brazier with a group of relatives of victims in Antakya, a city martyred by the earthquake.
With Léon Bruneau at Incirlik