Turkey President Erdogan holds talks with Vladimir Putin; discusses ongoing wildfire

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on July 30, had a telephonic conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to further enhance Ankara-Moscow ties. While both the leaders deliberated upon a range of issues including trade, energy, and economy, their primary focus stayed on the wildfires that have charred huge swathes of the Mediterranean country and claimed six lives. Later in a statement, the Turkish Presidency stated that issues that could enhance the Ankara-Moscow relationship were also brought to the table. 

According to the readout of the conversation posted by the Kremlin, Putin assured his ally that Russia would continue providing ‘comprehensive assistance’ to Turkey’s firefighting efforts and also wished the country a “speedy recovery”. Erdogan,  in turn, thanked the Russian leader. It is imperative to note that the Putin Administration recently sent five more Ilyushin Il-76 fire fighting helicopters to support Turkey in its battle against forest fires.

In addendum, they “positively” assessed the results of a meeting of the bilateral Intergovernmental Commission held the day before. According to the Tass news agency, the meet focussed on trade and economic cooperation between the two countries. Both Putin and Erdogan expressed mutual resolve to continue working together to implement bilateral agreements in multiple fields including energy and economy inter alia. 

Turkish wildfires

Turkey's southern Mediterranean coast is a popular destination for both local and foreign tourists. It is known for its scorching summer heat, which often causes wildfires. Turkish officials have said the latest fires are the biggest to date among the 41 wildfires in 13 of Turkey's 81 provinces since Tuesday. The current wildlife has blazed since Tuesday including the ones at Osmaniye and Kayseri.

Authorities have evacuated around 18 villages and districts in Antalya that were affected by plumes of smoke that billowed out of the burning landscape. About 16 more villages were evacuated in the neighboring provinces of Adana and Mersin. AFAD has also made incessant efforts to extinguish two separate wildfires, Pakdemirli said. Local media broadcasted footage that showed charred residential buildings and people escaping the smoke and burnt landmass while firefighters backed by helicopters struggled to extinguish the wildfires.

Image: AP