Greek-Turkish earthquake diplomacy

Greco-Turkish earthquake diplomacy - improving relations and growing mutual sympathy between Greece and Turkey , which occurred as a result of two earthquakes that hit both countries in 1999 . Despite the long period of tense relations preceding these events, the governments of both states contributed to the improvement of relations, which surprised many foreign observers.

The first of two earthquakes, the Izmit earthquake of August 17, 1999 with a magnitude of 7.4 on the Richter scale, severely damaged the city of Izmit and partly Istanbul , 17 thousand people died, and another 300 thousand were left homeless. The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted the Turkish side a few hours after the earthquake with a proposal of assistance, and on the same day sent the first group of rescuers. Almost immediately, numerous public and other non-governmental organizations joined in the assistance. So, a lot of help was sent by the unions of the Greek cities. Greek help was warmly received by the Turkish press, which wrote about the “times of friendship” ^[1] , “friendly hands in the dark days” ^[2] , the good organization of help ^[3] and its large volumes ^[4] . The attitude of the populations of both countries towards each other also improved, which was later used by governments ^[5] .

Less than a month after the Izmit earthquake, September 7 , a new earthquake of magnitude 5.9 occurred already in the suburbs of Athens . As a result, 143 people died, 12 thousand were injured, and a large number remained homeless. Despite the relatively small number of casualties, the economic damage was very large. Turkey also responded to this earthquake with significant help. ^[6] Turkish help in the form of rescuers also arrived first, 13 hours after the earthquake, and another group a few hours later. Many Turks offered substantial assistance, including agreeing to become blood donors ^[7] .