Türkiye has sent aid, medical supplies, and protective equipment to countries badly hit by the coronavirus epidemic, such as the UK, Italy, Spain, and several Balkan countries.
The Turkish Defense Ministry announced on April 10th that a Turkish military cargo plane carrying medical aid arrived in the UK.
“I hope that the friendly UK people will come out of this tragedy with minimal losses,” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan noted in a letter to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Erdoğan emphasized that the military cargo plane was sent to demonstrate solidarity with Türkiye’s friend and ally the United Kingdom.
Along with the UK, Türkiye also sent medical aid to five Balkan countries including Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Kosovo. Supplies were also sent to Ukraine.
Türkiye also sent medical aid to Libya and Somalia. "At the direction of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as part of the preventative measures against the Covid-19 virus, medical supplies were sent to our Libyan brothers and our military training cooperation and consultancy teams who are on duty in the region," Türkiye’s National Defense Ministry said on Twitter.
Previously, Türkiye sent aid, including masks, hazmat suits, goggles, and disinfectants to Italy and Spain. The crates containing the supplies carried messages reading: “With love to the people of Spain and Italy, from Türkiye” and the words of the 13th-century Sufi mystic Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi: "There is hope after despair, and many suns after darkness."