To support the victims of the catastrophic earthquake.. Donor conference in Brussels

A statement said the EU and its member states wanted to pledge “significant” aid.

“Our solidarity will be as strong as it was in the first hours after the earthquake,” European Commission President Ursula van der Leyen said, stressing that “the people of Turkey and Syria must know that we are with them for the long term.”

The EU “calls on international partners and global donors to show solidarity by making pledges commensurate with the scale and extent of the damage,” the statement added.

The 7.8-magnitude earthquake, followed nine hours later by a 7.6-magnitude earthquake, killed about 46,000 people and injured 105,000 in Turkey, according to final numbers.

Officials say 6,000 people have died in Syria.

Material losses in Turkey alone “exceed one hundred billion dollars,” according to summary accounts from the World Bank, the United Nations, the European Union and the Turkish government on Tuesday.

The donors’ conference is organized by the European Commission and Sweden, which brings together the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union with the Turkish authorities.

It is open to member states of the European Union, neighboring and partner countries, G20 members except Russia, six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the United Nations, international and humanitarian organizations, and international and European countries. Financial institutions.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced in a statement Thursday that it wants to “invest up to 1.5 billion euros” over the next two years in areas of Turkey hit by devastating earthquakes in February.