NATO Allies and partners come to Türkiye’s aid following devastating earthquakes

  • 07 Feb. 2023 -
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  • Last updated: 07 Feb. 2023 17:54

More than 1,400 emergency response personnel from more than twenty NATO Allies and partners – including invitees Finland and Sweden – are deploying to Türkiye, helping to respond to the devastating earthquakes which struck the country on 6 February. More than 53,000 Turkish first responders are currently on the ground.

Flags at half mast at NATO headquarters in Brussels in solidarity with Türkiye after the earthquake

NATO Allies and partners are providing different forms of assistance, including search and rescue teams with rescue dogs, fire fighters and structural engineering teams, medical personnel and supplies, and seismic experts.

“At this terrible time, we stand in solidarity with our Ally Türkiye and with all those affected, and NATO Allies stand ready to provide further assistance to those in need,” said NATO Spokesperson Oana Lungescu.

Support is being delivered through NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC), which is the Alliance’s principal civil emergency response mechanism in the Euro-Atlantic area. The Centre is active all year round, operational on a 24/7 basis, and involves all NATO Allies and partner countries. It functions as a clearing-house system for coordinating both requests for and offers of assistance mainly in case of natural and man-made disasters.

The flags of all 30 NATO Allies as well as the NATO flag are at half-mast at NATO Headquarters from today until sunset tomorrow to honour the victims and in solidarity with Türkiye.