Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with Bashar al-Assad as the two leaders discussed the devastating earthquakes that struck northern Syria and parts of the region. The Kremlin press office reported the call and the exchange that followed.
During their conversation, the Russian president offered heartfelt condolences for the disaster and pledged to provide the necessary support to Syria to help mitigate the impact and begin recovery efforts. Assad accepted the assistance with gratitude, and Russian rescue teams from the Ministry of Emergency Situations were prepared to travel to Syria in the hours ahead to aid rescue and relief operations.
Before the arrangements for direct aid to Syria, Putin conveyed condolences to Assad on the earthquake and reaffirmed Moscow’s readiness to help Syria address the consequences of the disaster.
In a separate communication, Putin sent a condolence telegram to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The message stated that Russia stands ready to provide any required assistance to Turkey in the wake of the quake.
On February 6, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck seven provinces in Turkey, with the Pazarcık area of Kahramanmaraş province identified as the epicenter. Subsequent reports indicated additional seismic events in central and eastern regions of the country, with CNN Turk noting a total of 105 aftershocks reported in the period after the initial quake.
Current official data indicated that the tremors resulted in significant casualties and structural damage. The death toll rose with initial figures showing more than a thousand fatalities in Turkey, along with thousands of buildings collapsing or sustaining severe damage. In Syria, the disaster provoked a substantial human toll as well, with hundreds reported dead and thousands injured. The broader regional impact included similar distress in neighboring nations, spanning Lebanon and Iraq, where emergency responders and international partners coordinated relief efforts amid ongoing aftershocks and ongoing rescue operations. The situation underscored the urgent need for coordinated humanitarian assistance, rapid deployment of emergency teams, and long-term reconstruction planning across affected communities. (Attribution: official briefings from government and regional relief agencies, as reported by CNN Turk and other outlets during initial coverage.)