Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with (a) his Turkish counterpart and (b) the United Nations to help ensure humanitarian access to people affected by the earthquake.

The Prime Minister spoke to President Erdogan on 7 February, noting the humanitarian situation over the border in north west Syria, where Turkey plays an important coordinating role. The Foreign Secretary has also engaged with his Turkish counterpart on maximising the efficiency of aid deliveries across the Syrian border.

Minister Mitchell spoke to Martin Griffiths (Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator at the United Nations) on 16 February and Lord Ahmad spoke to Muhannad Hadi (UN Regional Humanitarian Coordinator) on 8 February to discuss the importance of securing sufficient access from Turkey into north west Syria and we welcomed the UN-brokered agreement to open additional border crossings into north west Syria.

Minister Mitchell also visited Turkey on 19 February to see the response first-hand and met with UN agencies, the Disasters Emergency Committee, Care International and the White Helmets. On Friday 24 February, I spoke to Ibrahim Kalin (spokesperson and chief adviser to the Turkish President) about the earthquakes and UK support.