Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs
Russia deployed more than 120 rescuers, medics and sniffer dogs to Myanmar following a devastating earthquake that struck the Southeast Asian country on Friday, the Emergency Situations Ministry announced over the weekend.
The death toll from the 7.7-magnitude earthquake rose to more than 1,700 on Monday as more bodies were pulled from the rubble, the country’s military-led government, with thousands more injured and over 300 missing.
Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry, acting on orders from President Vladimir Putin, sent two teams to assist in search and rescue operations.
Myanmar’s state broadcaster MRTV reported Sunday that two Russian planes carrying rescue workers, ambulances and equipment arrived in the capital, Naypyidaw.
news
Georgian Police Arrest Russian Citizen During Anti-Government Protest
Read more
On Monday, the Russian team moved to Mandalay — one of the hardest-hit cities and Myanmar’s second-largest — where a 30-person advance unit, including drone operators and dog handlers, began working in the most devastated areas.
Sergei Vorontsov, the head of Russia’s rescue team, asked local authorities to grant Russian medics access to a hospital to assess its needs, according to the state-run news agency TASS.
Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry said Russian rescuers worked with their Chinese counterparts to pull a woman from the rubble in Mandalay on Sunday.
Myanmar’s ruling military junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun thanked key allies China, Russia and India for their assistance and said authorities were doing their best to manage the crisis.
Russia is among more than a dozen countries, including the United States, that sent aid after junta chief Min Aung Hlaing made a rare appeal for international assistance.
AFP contributed reporting.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office has designated The Moscow Times as an “undesirable” organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a “foreign agent.”
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work “discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership.” We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It’s quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you’re defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Continue
Not ready to support today? Remind me later.
×
Remind me next month
Thank you! Your reminder is set.
We will send you one reminder email a month from now. For details on the personal data we collect and how it is used, please see our Privacy Policy.
