Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu who is in Ankara came together with his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu.

After the meeting, a joint press conference was realized.

Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu stated that the TRNC was by the side of Türkiye, which experienced the greatest disaster in its history, and emphasized that the TRNC showed the solidarity of the Turkish Cypriot people by declaring 7 days of national mourning.

Noting that Türkiye and the TRNC are united in pain and joy, Çavuşoğlu thanked all TRNC authorities and people for their support during these difficult times.

“After the earthquake, the TRNC Civil Defence Search and Rescue teams came to Türkiye and started working intensively in the region and are continuing with their work. The Cyprus Turkish Peace Force Command also provided support to the work in the earthquake zone. My condolences to the Turkish Cypriots who lost their lives   said Çavuşoğlu.

He expressed the hope of receiving good news from the teams that are currently trapped under the rubble in Adıyaman and Hatay and added that everyone’s prayers are with these students.

Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu for his part shared information regarding the number of people that were staying at the İsias Hotel.

“There are still 80 people trapped under the wreckage of the hotel. Our civil defence teams are continuing to work and we hope to receive some good news” said Ertuğruloğlu.

He also gave information regarding the aid and equipment that was sent from the TRNC to the earthquake zone and the donations collected.

“As part of the support campaign for earthquake victims, the donation amount has reached almost 1.5 million TL via text messages sent to the Kuzey Kıbrıs TURKCELL and TELSİM. In addition, many individuals, associations, institutions and companies have given cash donations to campaigns organized for earthquake victims” said Ertuğruloğlu.