G-7 extends condolences to Türkiye, Syria over deadly earthquakes

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - The G-7 countries on Saturday expressed their "deepest condolences" to the people of Türkiye and Syria over deadly earthquakes that hit the countries earlier this month.

"The G7 members are working together with partners to ensure needed humanitarian, crisis response, and technical assistance are made available unfettered," said a joint statement by the G-7 foreign ministers and the EU foreign policy chief.

The statement, released by Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa, as chair of the G-7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting at the Munich Security Conference, also underlined the importance of "full implementation" of the decision to expand humanitarian access to northwestern Syria.

At least 40,642 people were killed and over 108,000 others injured in two powerful earthquakes that rocked southern Türkiye on Feb. 6, according to the latest official figures.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in the Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye,Elazig and Sanliurfa.
In Syria, at least 5,840 people were killed in the earthquake disaster.

The G-7 countries also reaffirmed their solidarity with Ukraine "for as long as it takes."

"They urged Russia to immediately and unconditionally withdraw all forces and equipment from Ukraine and respect Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders," the statement said.

“The G7 members reiterated, while recalling that no nuclear weapon has been used for 77 years, that Russia’s irresponsible nuclear rhetoric is unacceptable and that any use of chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons or related materials would be met with severe consequences,” it added.

It noted that G-7 countries reaffirmed the "critical importance" of continuing and expanding the Black Sea grain initiative.

"[G-7 members] stressed the need for Russian authorities to increase the pace of inspections and operations to meet global demand," the statement said.

Last July, Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed an agreement in Istanbul to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports which were paused after the war that began in February 2022.

Days before its scheduled expiration, the landmark grain deal was extended for another 120 days, beginning on Nov. 19.

The G-7 countries also condemned North Korea for launching another suspected ballistic missile toward the East Sea on early Saturday.