July 24, 2018•Update: July 24, 2018
By Fatih Hafiz Mehmet and Ismail Cimen
ANKARA
Top Turkish officials on Tuesday said Turkey stands ready to help Greece fight its deadly wildfires, expressing condolences for its neighbor's losses.
On Monday, two fires broke out on the east and west coasts of the country’s Attica region -- home to the capital Athens -- causing the death of 60 people and injuring more than 170.
Speaking to reporters in the Turkish parliament, Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said he had spoken with his Greek counterpart and that firefighting aircraft stands ready to deploy from Izmir, an Aegean province due east of Athens.
"We have no request at the moment," Pakdemirli added.
In a tweet, presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin also extended condolences to Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and the Greek people.
"Turkey stands by ready to help," he added.
Earlier on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu assured that Turkey is ready to help Greece and said that if needed, Turkey's firefighting airplanes and helicopters are ready to fly to Greece.
The fires in Greece have forced thousands of locals to flee to safer areas as firefighters battle the blazes.
