US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged $100 million in additional aid after arriving in Turkey on Sunday for a tour of the damage from this month's earthquake.
Mr Blinken said he was “profoundly saddened” to see the wreckage of the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that has killed at least 46,000 people in southern Turkey and northern Syria.
“The United States remains committed to doing everything we can to help with rescue, relief, and recovery efforts,” he said in a tweet.
Mr Blinken announced on Sunday the authorisation of another $50 million in Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Funds in response to the earthquake.
Washington is also providing $50 million in humanitarian assistance through the State Department and USAid, bringing the total for Turkey and Syria to $185 million, the department said.
Mr Blinken landed at the Incirlik Air Base in Turkey's southern province of Adana on Sunday afternoon, taking a helicopter tour of the damage with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Washington's ambassador to Ankara, Jeff Flake, was among those who greeted Mr Blinken on arrival.
The Secretary of State was later on Sunday due to meet members of the White Helmets rescue group, who have helped to lead rescue and recovery efforts in north-western Syria amid an absence of international support from the UN.
Mr Blinken also met the USAid Disaster Assistance Response Team (Dart) that administrator Samantha Power announced would assist with the recovery efforts shortly after the deadly quakes jolted Turkey and Syria.
The Dart search and rescue team is starting to leave Turkey, USAid announced on Saturday, after 11 days on the ground.
“We are shifting response operations beyond search and rescue to focus on surging the rapid delivery of relief supplies to millions of people,” it said in a statement.
Washington is working through UN agencies and charities to provide emergency assistance.
It included: “hot meals, water, medical care and supplies; non-food items such as blankets, clothes and hygiene kits, temporary shelter, and structural engineers; and essential mental health and psychosocial support. especially to affected children and to other vulnerable individuals,” the State Department said on Sunday.
Mr Blinken is expected to thank Turkey for “its support for cross-border aid to affected areas of Syria”, the department said, an issue that has reignited since the earthquake.
He will hold other talks in Ankara on Monday and is expected to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, AFP reported.
Washington last week committed $85 million in immediate humanitarian aid for Turkey, along with continuing USAid help.
This week's visit to Turkey is the US diplomat's first since becoming Secretary of State two years ago.
Lisel Hintz, an assistant professor of international relations at Johns Hopkins University, said Mr Blinken's visit sought "to signal to Turkey that the US is a committed ally who takes Turkey's concerns seriously … a position Ankara has questioned frequently in recent months".
"The fact that he shows up with an additional $100 million in financial assistance is quite significant," Ms Hintz told The National.
"Turkey's economy was already in crisis prior to the earthquake and the costs of aid provision in the short term and rebuilding and recovery in the longer term are massive."
Mr Blinken landed in Turkey after international security talks in Munich, where the Russian war in Ukraine dominated discussion.
It is expected to also be a subject of his discussions in Ankara, including Sweden and Finland's stalled Nato bids that Turkey has refused to ratify.
Ms Hintz believes Mr Blinken's repeated emphasis that "the United States is here" to help get aid to the people may be an attempt to improve public opinion of the US in Turkey.
"[Turkish] government figures' anti-US rhetoric … had fuelled conspiracies and further hardened societal attitudes," she said.
"The effects of earthquake diplomacy don't seem to prove long-lasting but the US may hope this is an occasion for ameliorating its reputation while providing assistance.
"I would be sceptical of any real warming of relations at either the diplomatic or societal level. The issues of tensions between the US and Turkey are numerous and deeply resonant."
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Match info
Uefa Nations League A Group 4
England 2 (Lingard 78', Kane 85')
Croatia 1 (Kramaric 57')
Man of the match: Harry Kane (England)
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
More on Quran memorisation:
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
QUALIFYING RESULTS
1. Max Verstappen, Netherlands, Red Bull Racing Honda, 1 minute, 35.246 seconds.
2. Valtteri Bottas, Finland, Mercedes, 1:35.271.
3. Lewis Hamilton, Great Britain, Mercedes, 1:35.332.
4. Lando Norris, Great Britain, McLaren Renault, 1:35.497.
5. Alexander Albon, Thailand, Red Bull Racing Honda, 1:35.571.
6. Carlos Sainz Jr, Spain, McLaren Renault, 1:35.815.
7. Daniil Kvyat, Russia, Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda, 1:35.963.
8. Lance Stroll, Canada, Racing Point BWT Mercedes, 1:36.046.
9. Charles Leclerc, Monaco, Ferrari, 1:36.065.
10. Pierre Gasly, France, Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda, 1:36.242.
Eliminated after second session
11. Esteban Ocon, France, Renault, 1:36.359.
12. Daniel Ricciardo, Australia, Renault, 1:36.406.
13. Sebastian Vettel, Germany, Ferrari, 1:36.631.
14. Antonio Giovinazzi, Italy, Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari, 1:38.248.
Eliminated after first session
15. Antonio Giovinazzi, Italy, Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari, 1:37.075.
16. Kimi Raikkonen, Finland, Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari, 1:37.555.
17. Kevin Magnussen, Denmark, Haas Ferrari, 1:37.863.
18. George Russell, Great Britain, Williams Mercedes, 1:38.045.
19. Pietro Fittipaldi, Brazil, Haas Ferrari, 1:38.173.
20. Nicholas Latifi, Canada, Williams Mercedes, 1:38.443.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
