Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a phone conversation with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Tuesday to discuss the latest developments regarding the crash of a Turkish military cargo plane in eastern Georgia.

According to a statement from the Turkish Presidency’s Directorate of Communications, the two leaders reviewed ongoing search and rescue operations in the mountainous region of Sighnaghi, where the C-130 aircraft went down earlier in the day while en route from Azerbaijan to Türkiye.

During the call, Prime Minister Kobakhidze extended his condolences to President Erdoğan and the Turkish people over the loss of 20 soldiers who were martyred in the incident.

“We share the sorrow of our Turkish brothers in this difficult moment,” Kobakhidze said, expressing Georgia’s full support for rescue and recovery efforts.

President Erdoğan thanked the Georgian Prime Minister for his message of solidarity and the swift cooperation shown by Georgian authorities in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

“Türkiye deeply appreciates the coordination and assistance provided by Georgia’s government and emergency teams,” Erdoğan stated.

The Georgian Interior Ministry earlier confirmed that joint operations between Turkish, Georgian, and Azerbaijani teams are continuing at the crash site to recover remains and secure the area for investigation.

Officials from both sides reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining close coordination throughout the ongoing efforts and expressed determination to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the fields of emergency response and defense logistics.

The C-130 Hercules aircraft, a key component of Türkiye’s military transport fleet, crashed in Georgia’s Sighnaghi municipality after taking off from Ganja, Azerbaijan, killing all 20 servicemen on board. (ILKHA)