Azernews.Az

Armenia has sent a planeload of humanitarian aid to the survivors of a powerful earthquake in southeastern Turkey that killed more than 500 people and left thousands of others homeless, Radio Liberty's Armenian Service quoted the country’s emergencies ministry as saying.

A transport plane was to deliver 40 tons of tents, sleeping bags, blankets, and other aid to the western Turkish city of Izmir on Friday.

A ministry statement said the Turkish government requested such assistance from the international community through the Turkish Red Crescent Society and NATO's Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Center.

The Armenian government offered to send relief aid and rescuers after the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck the area around the Turkish city of Van on Sunday.

President Serzh Sargsyan reiterated the offer in a phone call with his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul the following day.

With the epicenter of the quake located only 150 kilometers south of the Turkish-Armenian border, strong and unusually long tremors were also felt in much of Armenia, though they caused no devastation.

570 people have been reported killed and 2,555 injured in the quake. The death toll is expected to rise further as rescue officials fear for the many who remain trapped under the rubble.

Armenia and Turkey have been at odds for decades.