India and South Korea are among nations sending rescue personnel and supplies after a devastating earthquake hit Turkey and northern Syria.
India said it would send 100 members of its Natural Disaster Response Force, specially trained dog squads and equipment to Turkey. Medical teams with trained doctors, paramedics and essential medicines are also ready, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.
South Korea will dispatch a 60-person search and rescue team and also send medical supplies.
In announcing the plan Tuesday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol described Turkey as a “brother nation” that sent troops to fight alongside South Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War. Turkey lost more than 700 of its forces in action.
Jeon Ha Gyu, spokesperson of South Korea’s Defense Ministry, said the ministry was arranging plans with related agencies to mobilize military aircraft to transport the rescue workers and aid supplies.
“It’s an obvious decision to help our brother nation Turkey to deal with this pain and difficulty,” Yoon said during a Cabinet meeting. “An incident involving such enormous casualties is more than just a disaster of a certain nation and should be seen as an international disaster, and the international society should fully perform its duty and responsibility.”
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