Erdoğan vows to bolster Türkiye against quake threat

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has pledged to enhance Türkiye's resilience to earthquakes.

 "We have never forgotten the fact that Türkiye is a country under the threat of earthquakes," Erdoğan said in a message shared on Aug. 17, commemorating the anniversary of the 1999 earthquake in the Marmara region.

Erdoğan highlighted ongoing urban transformation initiatives aimed at enhancing safety.

"We have provided nearly 20 million of our citizens with safe homes with the projects we have implemented," he said. "We will continue our work with determination until we make all of our cities more prepared for all kinds of disasters."

The president also addressed the ongoing reconstruction efforts in southern Türkiye, following the devastating earthquakes that struck the region last year.

"We are working diligently with all our resources to make our earthquake zone more robust and magnificent than before," he said. "We are constantly developing new projects and encouraging our citizens living in risky structures to renovate their buildings."

Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş and Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz also marked the anniversary with statements reflecting on the "enduring pain" of the 1999 disaster.

"Even though 25 years have passed, we still feel the pain and sorrow in our hearts," Kurtulmuş said. Yılmaz echoed the sentiment, adding, "May God not let our country and all of humanity experience such pain again."

The Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) also released a statement commemorating those who lost their lives in the tremors.