Türkiye is in favor of having good relations with all of its neighbors, Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun told a Greek daily on Saturday.
"Of course, we would like to thank Greece and all the supporting countries. Regarding our relations with Greece, I can say this: We always want to have good relations with all our neighbors. It is natural to have disagreements between states from time to time,” Altun told Kathimerini Daily.
"We must resolve these disputes on the basis of meaningful and sincere dialogue and fairness, in accordance with international law. The Turkish nation has always extended the hand of friendship with them," he said.
Altun said Türkiye immediately called for international aid after the first major earthquake; and that search and rescue teams from dozens of countries, including Greece, came to the quake-hit region.
"Greece was one of the first countries to offer aid to Türkiye. In these difficult times, a neighbor extending a helping hand is a true neighbor," Çavuşoğlu said on Twitter.
Also, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was among the first leaders who called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to convey condolences and support for the Turkish state and nation.
Meanwhile, Altun said Türkiye is doing its best to heal the wounds of the victims of Feb. 6 powerful earthquakes.
He noted that citizens also provide financial and material support to institutions that carry out aid activities, especially Türkiye's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
"Indeed, we have clearly demonstrated the unity and integrity of Türkiye with its state and nation during this difficult period. At the moment, our government has no priority other than meeting the needs of our citizens and rebuilding our cities affected by the earthquake," he said.
The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes were centered in Kahramanmaraş and struck 10 other provinces – Adana, Adıyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazığ, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Şanlıurfa.
More than 13 million people have been affected by the devastating quakes, while the death toll is now over 44,215.
"Both these earthquakes were bigger than the one we experienced in the Marmara region in 1999. Moreover, 11 provinces were affected by this situation separately. Our nation called these earthquakes the 'disaster of the century'," Altun said.
Asked about the possible postponement of the upcoming elections in Türkiye – scheduled for May 14 – Altun said, "We do not have such an agenda. Our number one priority right now is to heal wounds as soon as possible. Of course, we are in great pain. But we will overcome these difficult days with the unity of state and nation."
Over the difficulty in accessing Twitter, Altun underlined that the fight against disinformation has turned into a priority not only in Türkiye but also all over the world in recent years.
He said that after the earthquake, fake news, which misled rescue teams, was shared on social media.
"We are investigating whether this was intentional or if it was done by internal and external elements who wanted to sabotage the search and rescue efforts. Therefore, an administrative decision was taken.
"Twitter also said that it understood our concerns and took concrete steps to address our concerns. A few hours later, the restrictions were lifted," he added.
Upon a question on whether it is a "realistic promise" to start the reconstruction of buildings in the earthquake-hit areas in March, Altun said, "It is certainly a realistic goal because the Republic of Türkiye is a strong state. It has serious abilities."
He stressed that Türkiye will heal the wounds without delay just as it did in previous disasters, adding, "We will provide our citizens with safe and high-quality accommodation."