The foreign ministers of the Organization of Turkic States are holding a meeting on Thursday in Türkiye's capital Ankara ahead of an extraordinary summit of leaders.
The meeting of top diplomats are held on the same day when the leaders of Organization of Turkic States will convene for a summit on disaster and emergency management and humanitarian aid.
The extraordinary summit at the Presidential Complex will focus on the aftermath of the Febtuary 6 earthquakes that shook Türkiye. The summit will serve as a high-level platform for the discussion of the extraordinary agenda of the organization aroused due to the recent earthquake disaster in southern and southeastern regions of Türkiye. The leaders will elaborate on solid multilateral cooperation and coordination mechanisms as part of the organization in the fight against disasters and hold consultations on current challenges in the region.
Following the summit, the leaders are expected to sign Ankara declaration.
Strength is in unity
Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) Kubanychbek Omuraliev told Anadolu that the theme of the summit is "Disaster Emergency Management and Humanitarian Aid," adding countries act with the principle of "Our strength is in our unity."
“In these difficult days, the people and states of the world came to help. Search and rescue teams were sent, and they worked with other teams,” said Omuraliev.
He said although search and rescue teams that went to the region immediately after the earthquakes had returned to their countries, OTS member states continued to provide aid, especially meeting the need for tents and hospitals.
The Organization of Turkic States, formerly called the Turkic Council, is an international organization comprising prominent independent Turkic countries that work together to elevate relations and the union among themselves. Its members are Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. EU member country Hungary, Turkmenistan and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus have observer status.
