US to continue providing aid to quake-hit Türkiye

By Abdullah Dogan

ADANA, Türkiye (AA) - US Ambassador to Ankara Jeffry Flake said on Friday that his country will continue providing aid to the quake-hit regions in Türkiye.

“The US government through USAID (US Agency for International Development) has announced an initial tranche of a grant of $85 million and more will be announced soon,” Flake said.

Underlining that they also contribute through the UN, he said the American Chamber of Commerce, as well as the Türkiye chamber, raised nearly $50 million.

“When I talk to my former colleagues in the United States Senate and the House, I remind them that over the years, Türkiye has responded on five continents in more than 50 countries to earthquakes and floods, and other natural disasters. So they paid it forward. And now it's our turn to pay back,” he said.

The US stands by Türkiye as long as it takes during the “recovery phase,” he added.

At least 38,044 people were killed by the two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on Feb. 6, the country's disaster agency said early Friday.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes were centered in Kahramanmaras and struck 10 other provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Hatay, Gaziantep, Malatya, Kilis, Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa. More than 13 million people have been affected by the devastating quakes.

Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the strong tremors that struck Türkiye in the space of less than 10 hours.

*Writing by Anna Cecilia Canatan