Vietnam sends 76 soldiers to Turkey for earthquake relief

Deputy Minister of National Defense Nguyen Tan Cuong on Friday asked the Department of Rescue and Disaster Relief to cooperate with relevant entities to deploy the extra forces to Turkey for rescue missions.

The deployed soldiers included teams of military doctors, rescuers and search and rescue dog trainers. Vehicles, modern equipment and drugs were also mobilized.

The defense ministry also announced plans to support the Turkish people with 10 tons of food rations.

On Thursday, 24 rescuers and medical workers from the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security flew to Turkey to help search for victims following the devastating earthquakes.

Earthquakes struck the Turkey-Syria region early Monday morning, killing nearly 24,000 people in both countries as of Saturday, and rendering hundreds of thousands homeless. It was the biggest natural disaster to strike the region since 1999, when a similarly powerful quake killed more than 17,000 people in Turkey, Reuters reported.