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CNN International: 7.5-Magnitude Aftershock Reported Nine Hours after Quake; Journalist: Up to Eight "Very Strong" Aftershocks in Under a Minute; Frigid Weather Conditions are Exacerbating the Disaster; U.S. Geological Survey: 7.8 Magnitude Quake Hit Early Monday Local Time; 1,800 Plus Dead in Syria and Turkey after Massive Earthquake. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired February 06, 2023 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: I'm Max Foster in London with this breaking news seems devastation unfolding right now in Turkey and Syria, after what's been called one of the most powerful earthquakes to hit the region in a century.

More than 1600 people were killed and thousands were injured when the massive quake struck Turkey's Gaziantep Province early on Monday morning and with an unknown number of people still buried beneath the rubble that number could raise dramatically.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT: We do not know how far the number of deaths and injuries will rise as debris removal works continue in many buildings in the quake zone. Our hope is that we will recover from this disaster with the least loss of life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Rescue worker to work as frantically searching for survivors in busily cold temperatures. But even as they do, major aftershocks are rocking the area. CNN's Scott McLean is falling developments joins us here in London with the latest on that and these aftershocks are a massive, aren't they?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the number of challenges here for rescue workers Max, just continues to multiply really these aftershocks under any other circumstance had there not had been a 7.8 overnight. You would call them massive earthquakes on their own. So you had the 7.8 which happened after 4 o'clock in the morning.

And then just about two and half hours ago or so you had another major aftershock that was a 7.5. And just to put that into context, that is the strongest earthquake stronger even than the last really substantial earthquake in Turkey, which was 1999. That was a 7.4 and that one killed 17,000 people left half a million people homeless. So it just gives you a sense of what we're up against as these rescue workers are battling not only the constant tremors and smaller earthquakes, but also the risk of major aftershocks like this one plus the cold weather plus the snow. I just want to show you a piece of video that we've gotten in not long ago from Malatya this was from the most recent aftershock there.

This is a reporter with a Turkish channel called news live on air when it seems like the obvious clearly they realize that there's more shaking, they hear the sounds and then start running. So I'll play the piece of video and then I'll translate what the reporter says watch.

The sounds there, Max are absolutely terrifying. They're so the reporter here is saying as we were heading to the rubble to film search and rescue efforts that were two consecutive aftershocks. With a loud noise in the building you're seeing on my left was brought down to earth.

There's lots of dust this local resident here he is covered in dust some really terrifying scenes and we also have updates on the number of killed and injured more than 1000 now in Turkey alone who have been killed. According to the authorities, more than 2800 buildings have been demolished have collapsed.

So you imagine what happened there. You imagine that each one of these sites that we're seeing the pictures up, multiply that by 2800. And you can imagine what potentially the death toll is going to be here especially since this earthquake, the initial one took place overnight, there are more than 7000 injured but President Erdogan made clear earlier today that they simply don't know how many people may still be trapped underneath of the rubble.

Obviously there is aid coming in from around the world, the rescue workers from around the world around the country to try to get there but these things take time. And with these really bitterly cold temperatures, nothing can happen quickly enough given that, of course it would be extremely difficult for someone to survive underneath the rubble, very likely badly injured in these kind of a temperatures, which are right around freezing for significant periods of time, Max.

FOSTER: Just seen that the U.K. has been asked by the Turkish Government for search and rescue teams. They're sending 76 personnel apparently, but they're particularly looking for seismic listening devices, concrete cutting and breaking equipment. So this is a sort of kit that they need in the next you know, few hours really don't they in order to get those people from out under the rubble?

MCLEAN: Yes, that's absolutely right and even when it comes to more basic things like that, like just heavy machinery to try to pick through some of the debris if in fact there is someone trapped that maybe they can get to. These things are readily available in big cities like Gaziantep which by the way has the highest death toll right now.

[08:05:00] MCLEAN: More than 200 people killed, there are at least 200 people killed I should say. But one of the concerns is that a lot of this equipment perhaps isn't found as readily available in some of these smaller towns and villages closer to the epicenters where perhaps the search and rescue efforts are much more rudimentary than they are in the big cities.

Now, hopefully, a lot of these towns and villages don't have the kind of high rises that we have in some of the bigger cities. But remember, 1999 was a real wake up call for Turkey. And that's when they started to really get smart on building codes and make sure that any new builds were according to sort of earthquake proofing standards.

But in the smaller towns and villages where you have older buildings, perhaps not up to the same kind of codes. That's where there's plenty of concern that the death toll could be even higher and we just simply don't know about it yet, because the mobile connectivity out there is not great at the moment, Max.

FOSTER: OK, Scott, thank you. In Syria official say at least 592 people have died in the quake serious state news agency says most of the damage and deaths were in and around Aleppo, near Syria's Northern border with Turkey. There are also casualties reported in opposition held territory in Syria's Northwest rescue crews across the region are desperately trying to search or reach those stuck under the rubble of fallen buildings earlier.

They managed to pull this young boy out from the rubble in the City of Idlib. Salma has been monitoring all of the Syrian movements. And sadly, they've got experience if this hadn't made groups like the White Helmets know exactly what they're doing in these situations.

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is an absolutely catastrophic event for a country that's already been devastated by more than a decade of war, Max. You heard there from my colleague Scott about how Turkish authorities have really been preparing for a huge earthquake now for nearly two decades. They are trying to bring up building codes.

They are trying to make sure that people are safe. In Syria, the exact opposite has been happening. There has been a civil war that's literally rattled the country destroyed its infrastructure targeted hospitals and clinics. And you have to remember that the civil conflict is very much playing out here on the ground as this earthquake happens in its aftermath, you have two different authorities.

On the ground, you have the regime controlled areas, the government controlled areas. They're receiving help, of course from Damascus, and then you have the rebel held areas in the north like places like Italy, where they're entirely reliant on rebel forces providing help on volunteers like the White Helmets to pull people out from under the rebel.

But these volunteers Max, they themselves need help. But one of them made an appeal as White Helmets rescue workers were trying to pull people out of the rubble. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very difficult task for us. We need help, we need the international community to do something to help us to support us, and northwest Syria now is disaster area. We need help from everyone to save our people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABDELAZIZ: You can hear the emotion in his voice there, Max. It's absolutely a desperate and devastating situation for a Syrian community that's been traumatized. As I mentioned by this conflict, many people were waking up wondering if it was war planes when it really was an earthquake.

And now you have more aftershocks coming again for these traumatized children living in these areas with very little resources, very little help. I know we have images to show you of the hospitals that are absolutely overwhelmed. We saw pictures on social media of the dead literally lying on the floor of hospitals bleeding out untreated, because there is no care to give them body bags piling up again, in these clinics.

And you heard there again from my colleague, Scott how the international community is already offering help to Turkey, already trying to bring the equipment they need. It will not be the same case for Syria. There is simply not the access there. You have to remember Damascus, that government is sanctioned by the West because of its involvement in this conflict.

So there will be no direct line of communication. There will be nobody from the White House picking up the phone and asking President Bashar al-Assad what he needs. This will very much be dependent on the people living there relying on themselves.

And these aftershocks coming one after another in this already devastated area and even north of that border inside Turkey you're talking about millions of Syrian refugees living there this was supposed to be there safe space Max, and it absolutely is devastated now.

FOSTER: Salma verses Scott, thank you. Let's speak to CNN's Jomana Karadsheh. She's in Istanbul and she's been speaking to her contacts there. I mean, we're not getting all the information right now, is we because we're not the priority. It's the rescue teams on the ground need to try to help as many people as possible but how would you rate this in terms of the disasters have hit that area recently?

[08:10:00]

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I mean, it was President Erdogan on just a short time ago, Max, describing this as the biggest disaster to hit Turkey in the last century, since that 1939 devastating earthquake that claimed tens of thousands of lives. This is a major disaster when you have a country like Turkey that has the capabilities; it has the resources to deal with natural disasters.

This is a country that deploys teams, usually, to disaster zones to assist with search and rescue operations. It is now requesting international support to deal with the aftermath of this devastating earthquake, Max. They have declared this a level 4 emergency, which means triggering a request for international assistance.

And President Erdogan saying that they have gotten offers from NATO, EU more than 45 countries that are offering support and assistance to deal with this very delicate and very complex search and rescue operation, because if you look at the area that has been impacted. Yes, Gaziantep was the epicenter, but the actual earthquake zone, Max, stretches across a vast amount of territory across Southern Turkey and across the border into Syria, for Turkey itself.

I mean, in the early hours, as we started getting the reports of the damage and the destruction that has been caused. We were starting to get information coming from every single one of these provinces in different governor's announcing numbers. And now we've got, of course, the centralized crisis management team is dealing with this.

And we're starting to get a better picture about the extent of the damage. But we still don't know how many people are trapped under the rubble. And this is something that President Erdogan also warned saying, look, thousands of buildings have been destroyed. We don't really know how many people are under the rubble right now.

And I mean, they're in this race against time, you've got a few hours of daylight left for the search and rescue operations right now. You've got the very challenging weather conditions right now whether it is for the search and rescue with this winter storm, the rain, the snow, freezing temperatures also, people who are trapped outside with no shelter and those under the rubble.

And then you also have these terrifying aftershocks one after the other. A very powerful one is 7.5 in the last couple of hours, hitting that area as well. So you know you've got people dealing with the trauma, with the loss with what they have gone through. In addition to that you've got these continuing really powerful aftershocks that are pretty much earthquakes their own, Max.

FOSTER: OK Jomana, will leave you to get more from your sources and keep across that. I just want to bring you some new images that we've had from Syria, some aerial images, which really gives you a sense of just how damaging this earthquake has been to that area of Syria where we've been getting less information really because of well look at the state or the place.

This is a drone flying over just one area that has been utterly devastated. You've got the crowds they're obviously doing what they can to help literally working through those piles of rubble with their hands, which is why they're desperately seeking more equipment and experts from foreign countries you need to get there pretty quickly in order to save more lives.

Are, the earthquake happened during the 4 a.m. hour in Turkey? While many people were still asleep, forcing them to run from their homes into the frigid overnight temperatures. As day breaks you can see people huddling in the freezing cold beside collapse homes and apartments. CNN Meteorologist Chad Myres joins us now with a look at just how low the temperatures really got there. I mean, it's really tough, isn't it for the rescuers?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It is, it really is and for the survivors as well, because they will not be going back into those homes tonight absolutely any chance that their nerves will allow them to go home when we're still seeing aftershocks and buildings are still shaking.

It was a 7.8 and then we had a 7.5 aftershock and people are out in the streets. Even right now in Aleppo, it is 6 and it's going to fall below zero for tonight. There will be snow in the - especially near the new 7.5 aftershock. This first quake was significant in the fact that it was yes cold outside but also that it was a long duration and a long earthquake.

Temperatures even here for where we're seeing the aftershock well below zero for Aleppo, at least you get above zero for the day. But here's where the first shock happened right through here. Here's where the big aftershock, the 7.5 happened here. In this aftershock here this was more of an up and down motion.

[08:15:00]

MYERS: But the aftershock or the first shock that we saw here north of Aleppo, this was the one that kind of stretched the entire ground. I'm going to get technical here for you, Max. Here are two plates; you can see I've just put tape on them to kind of show you where they should be where they're locked in place for decades.

Well, in this case, the plates are here and they moved like this. It's called a slip strike fault. Almost the exact opposite of when I use these blocks last, which was in Sumatra, when the ground went like this, pushed all of that water up into the ocean, and then made that huge tsunami there.

This is the area here that slipped, there was 190 kilometers that slipped along this fault line so we talk about the epicenter and we talk about the focus and all that where the middle where it started. But this was a long duration and a long slip. As we talked about how many people were affected by the Anatolian plate, the African plate and right here, the Arabian plate.

This is where it slipped right through there and then here up in the mountains, is when it went up a little bit more and causes that up and down motion. Buildings don't like to do this, Max, they don't like their base to go like this and then they have to catch up. That's kind of like a freight train bumping into all the other freight cars ahead of it. They don't like to do that because they're not built to do this, when you start to do all that ground shaking, Max.

FOSTER: OK Chad, thank you for explaining just what's causing all of this devastation will be given across it of course, throughout the day. Still to come, we'll update you on rescue efforts in Turkey answer to find survivors in the rubble of all those collapse buildings.

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FOSTER: Continuing our breaking coverage of the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake that has rocked Southern Turkey and Northern Syria as well. I want to show you these new images we just got in from Besnaya in Syria. You can see the utter destruction that they're dealing with and all the efforts of the local people doing what they can with their hands?

Really to find anyone beneath the rubble that desperately awaiting new kit and equipment from other areas of Turkey and Syria but also from other countries as well more than 1600 people have been killed and thousands are injured so far.

Rescue teams are working against the clock and freezing temperatures to save thousands of people who are believed to be trapped under the rubble. We haven't got exact figures officials say hospitals are operating at their absolute maximum capacity.

[08:20:00]

FOSTER: Many of them have been damaged too. Multiple aftershocks have been felt across the region reaching Israel and Lebanon. Witnesses in Gaziantep, Turkey told CNN that up to eight strong aftershocks were felt in just under a minute after that first quake. The shaking can be felt as far as way as Lebanon, Israel, as I was saying. CNN's Hadas Gold joins us from Jerusalem. What do people experience there?

HADAS GOLD, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Max, well actually overnight, my own husband said that he felt the earthquake are taking place in the 3 a.m. hour. I've heard from other friends in this region who said that they were awoken especially in Tel Aviv; it seems to have been stronger in Tel Aviv. They were awakened with essentially what they said was everything shaking.

And actually, that aftershock that happened just a few hours ago in Haifa, which is a Northern city in Israel as people were fleeing buildings because that's how strongly it was felt. So quite a shock for people here who are not necessarily used to earthquakes to feel that aftershock and to feel the initial tremor overnight enough to wake some people up out of their sleep.

Although Israeli Authorities are saying that there were no injuries or reports of damage. It seems to have just been some shaking. But we are hearing from the Israelis that they've already been in touch with their Turkish counterparts and that they are planning to send aid.

We are hearing that there are going to be two planes, military planes that will be taking off today this afternoon and this evening from a military base. These will be military planes that are capable of landing in adverse environments. Planes that don't necessarily need runways that is in good shape. And they will be providing search and rescue teams, medical aid, and humanitarian aid. And what's also really interesting in this is that is the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also said that they had received a request for assistance from Syria, which of course, does not exactly have the best relationship with Israel, and that they are looking to send that aid to Syria as well.

It goes to show you just the levels of devastation here that it sorts of transcends, any sort of politics, people just want to be sending the aid. You know, we're hearing from all sorts of countries from Taiwan to the Netherlands all in between, from the Gulf countries that are all, not only speaking with their Turkish counterparts.

But already announcing teams of hundreds of rescuers who are they are planning to send and they're going to need a lot of help, you know, the Israelis aren't just talking about search and rescue teams.

But also the sort of humanitarian aid that will be needed to help house and feed and take care of their survivors, as well as psychological help, psychological cycle trauma teams that will be going there to try and help people just kind of comprehend what happened and try and help them sort of like move on to what's next? But also what's the fear for a lot of people in this region are more aftershocks or potentially further earthquakes.

You know, here in Jerusalem there's always talk about how it's about time for the next major earthquakes was to happen every 100 years and so. Now of course the focus on is what to do in case that another one comes they're advising people of course, you know, go out to an open area or go into a shielded room of some kind. And now there is an early warning system here in Israel that is supposed to at least give some people some time if a tremor is felt just a little bit further away, Max.

FOSTER: OK, thank you Hadas join us from Jerusalem. Even felt that far away, can you believe? We'll be right back with more on the earthquake.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:25:00]

FOSTER: We're going to start on our "Breaking News" story a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hitting Turkey and Syria early on Monday; one journalist in Turkey was staying with his parent's right in the earthquake's epicenter. He said he felt like the shaking would never end and strong aftershocks one of the measuring 7.5 magnitude of struck parts of Southern and central turkey.

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan said the quake knocks down thousands of buildings resulting in the dreadful death toll. The NATO, the EU dozens of other countries and aid groups are mobilizing to help. Sending in search and rescue teams trained search dogs and tons of equipment, donating hundreds of thousands of dollars for disaster relief and sending supplies like emergency generators, tents, and blankets. I'm joined by Eyad Kourdi, Journalist who lives in Gaziantep. Thank you for speaking to us and glad to hear you're safe. What was your experience of the earthquake early on today?

EYAD KOURDI, JOURNALIST: Thank you, Max, I was awake when the earthquake happened. It started at 4:19 am local time. So in other words, the first three seconds being like a light shake. And in Gaziantep normally we see like it goes kind of like shakes once every couple of months.

And they're like it became really, really strong. And then my family, my parents, both my parents screamed, and like I was running out and I was trying just to calm them now and I'm telling them like stay in our safe place. Get out of the alleys stay under the door gates, and doors that can scrub.

I mean, I know 7.8 is a lot on the earthquake measurements. But it's really, if we felt to me like somebody is like, catching me from my chest and like trying to push me hard. I actually fell on the ground while it was happening. And I was trying to call my family tell them it's going to be over, it's going to be over --. It's not going to be over.

When it was over, I remember, it was like about four minutes, we ran out of the building with like, our pajamas and slippers. So like, very light weight classes. We were out and about 30 minutes after when we when the aftershocks a little bit calm down. I came back to the house for some classes.

And once I went back out, it was very, very strong. I actually don't believe like I made it optic I at some point like in the last 10 years, I felt it's over like that. And then after that, around the City of Gaziantep saw a couple of buildings collapsing. In general, the City of Gaziantep has not been affected that badly compared to other cities because it's an urban city, it's a big city.

Most buildings are new most buildings are earthquake resistant. So I don't know the exact number of the casualties, but I would assume it's way less than other cities. And then after that, few hours after that I went to the Epicenter, I did not arrive to the - but I was close by in a city called the Atlantic, a small town of 35000 people and like it was like Armageddon.

Every single street had a single building at least one building collapsed. I stayed there for 30 minutes and I felt 4 aftershocks. And that's like those aftershocks were not like the 7.5 second earthquake. So I stayed there, I took some videos and then I had to go out because I felt it's really unsafe to be there.

Being surrounded about like damaged buildings. I watched the highway which was really close to the second 7.5 earthquake center in - and it was like a biblical like. We were on an Autobahn for like 50 cars stuck in a traffic jam and then suddenly the earthquake happened. And we know like there weren't any buildings nearby like the closest building was like one kilometer away. So we're pretty safe and everybody ran out of the cars every single person I we stayed out for like 12 minutes, 15 minutes and then a lot of you even did not want to go back and do their cars and continue driving. So I went back Gaziantep after that truck happens and like on the way of Gaziantep on the way back.

I saw about five kilometers of traffic jam or people coming out of Gaziantep, gas stations are full. All markets I see here are closed like I am -- I'm trying to buy some stuff like that.

[08:30:00]

I haven't seen any market open, obviously. But to be fair to the municipality in Gaziantep is like my family now stays in a mosque, which is where the structure is a little bit stronger than our house.

The - they gave us some water some bread, some hot, warm rice. And inside the mosque is a little bit warm. It's the problem is that like you - like we're not - like I know like inside during earthquakes you should stay outdoors, but the temperature is about one Celsius. And it was raining heavily.

Now it's stopped a little bit but still very cloudy. So we're hoping that it's not going to rain more. If it doesn't rain I'm planning like, stay just like safe outside of the mosque. My family cannot check inside outside of the mosque, but I'm going to stay there outside and hopefully it's going to be stops raining so I can sleep like just a couple of blankets with one on the ground one on me and watch for that.

FOSTER: Yes, we're glad you're safe despite the trauma that you've been through. And our thoughts with everyone in your country right now. We're currently looking at images not from Turkey but from Syria. These are live images of a rescue operation. They had got some heavy lifting equipment there, but they're largely depending on people listening out and trying to get through the rubble to reach anyone that might be underneath.

The death toll from the earthquake has steadily climbed course and search and rescue teams in Turkey and Syria race against time to save those lives the very latest on this major disaster just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Welcome back to our continuing coverage of a massive earthquake that has struck Turkey and Syria. At least 1800 people are dead in Turkey and Syria after one of the strongest earthquakes in a century hit the region early on Monday.

[08:35:00]

It was felt as far away as Lebanon and Israel, the whole buildings were flattened thousands of them in the region has suffered dozens of aftershocks, some of those pretty massive as well. The videos coming in are astounding in Syria, rescue workers are emerging from rubble racing to get an injured child to safety. All of these efforts are unfolding in the freezing cold temperatures currently there. The World Health Organization says it has activated its network of emergency medical teams in both Turkey and Syria. Joining me now, Mohamed Osmam, Communications Manager for the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations, Mohammed joins us from Gaziantep, which was at the epicenter of this earthquake. And you're in your car. Is that the safest place to be?

MOHAMED OSMAN, UOSSM'S COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER: Yes, yes. Thank you very much. Thank you for the report, you introduced the situation. Actually, it's a very hard situation since the 4 am till now 12 hour in our car, we work up.

We were not having anything on ourselves, hold my children and go to my car away from building because that catastrophe is very hard. You have talked about the numbers here in Turkey and Northern Syria. Actually, it's received, it's reached Damascus also, as you mentioned in your report.

FOSTER: What does it look like the city and how are people coping?

OSMAN: Yes, the official numbers and statistics here in Turkey, about more than 900 people died. Some buildings are totally collapsed more than 5000 people injuries, and about 3000 buildings totally collapsed. The people still stuck under the rubbles. And the situation that minutes after minutes it's still keep going. The earthquake it didn't stop since 4 am till now. We are feeling that earthquake every few minutes.

FOSTER: And the aftershocks were particularly bad this time, weren't they? There were many of them. And they were almost as severe at least one of them almost as severe as the initial earthquake. So that must have been very unsettling because they just kept coming.

OSMAN: Yes, yes, sure. The situation here in Turkey, the government take care about the injuries and the people walking in the streets everywhere. But the situation in Northern Syria is very hard and we are suffering literally, as you mentioned that I'm a humanitarian actor in here in Gaziantep in Turkey and in Northern Syria.

Some medical facilities and hospitals have had to suspend services when you damages unrest. Certain others specifically, the facilities that depend on energy provided by the Turkish electric network have lost the source of energy. The high number of injuries versus a low number of specialized medical staff and shortages of medicines and medical supplies bring the situation to the devastating level.

Although the region has been living for over a decade in more context, under continuous shelling, yet the earthquake as fast as it is - the need to an extreme level, which unless we'll get immediate response will be fatal for many lives.

FOSTER: OK, well thank you for joining us and hope you are OK. And I know your family is sitting there in the car with you. And that's the safest place to be often in these situations. After the break, Beijing hits out at Washington after the U.S. military shutdown a suspected Chinese spy balloon that and an update on today's other top stories just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:40:00]

FOSTER: We just got some extraordinary footage of a child rescued from the rubble in the snow. A little girl you can see being pulled from that rubble alive. Thankfully, she's in a town North of Gaziantep. We don't know anything more about her or her family. These are the moments that keep the rescue workers going though, aren't they in all that snow and the destruction saving that little girl's life.

We turn now to some other top stories that we are falling for you today. Ukraine is sending mixed messages about the tenure of its Defense Minister at a key point in the war. On Sunday, a top ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Olesky Resnikoff would be replaced on Monday he appeared to dial back on his remarks saying no change is expected this week.

The Defense Minister has been under pressure for several weeks related to corruption scandals inside his department. Ukraine's Defense Minister says his troops are set to begin training on leopard tanks in Germany meanwhile, other Ukrainian crews are already training on British tanks in the UK.

Critics question how Ukraine will balance this mix of Western tanks? But that's exactly what NATO forces often have to do. CNN's International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson is near Tapa Army Base in Estonia, where NATO's annual winter exercises are underway. How's it going there, Nic?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, there are lots to learn for the Ukrainians about the use of the tanks that they're just getting their hands on for the training. Now the leopard twos and the challenges both of which Ukraine is getting are both here in these big military exercises.

44 tanks total 500 military vehicles involved 1500 troops just about 170 kilometers from Russia's border. What these troops are training to do is to take territory using the tanks with infantry and that's exactly what the Ukrainians want to do as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON (voice over): Danish leopard two tanks similar to those soon to be deployed to Ukraine, storming an imagined enemy position in Estonia. French troops attack fictional front lines as Estonian troops pretend to hold them off all part of the Baltic Nation's annual NATO winter exercise to gel the multinational alliances into a singular fighting force. These military exercises feel different the French have bought in far more troops in the past.

ROBERTSON (on camera): And with war still raging not far away in Ukraine commanders say this training feels much more real.

ROBERTSON (voice over): Two thirds of the 44 tanks involved in the exercise British challenger two tanks more like these also soon deploying to Ukraine. Lessons learned here valuable for the Ukrainians, communications between the challenger and leopard tanks critical but no doubt use correctly they could be a game changer.

MAJOR NICK BRIDGES, BRITISH ENHANCED FORWARD PRESENCE, ESTONIA: Both can do can fight at night and they've got hunter killer capabilities as well. So they can engage a target while looking for the next target. So very much more advanced tanks advanced sighting systems, and then what they - would have.

ROBERTSON (on camera): The Ukrainians say they want to use the leopard two tanks as an iron fist to punch through Russian lines give Putin a bloody nose and snatch back territory.

[08:45:00]

ROBERTSON (voice over)): They've lost the lesson here that won't happen overnight. Typically, Danes train individual leopard two operators in two weeks, a crew of four in two months. But it can take two years to combine them into a force able to seize territory.

MAJOR RASMUS JENSEN, DANISH ARMY: You see it's the tactics, that takes time, then you have the theory as a crew, and then you have to learn to drive as a crew within a platoon and within the squad from.

ROBERTSON (voice over): Estonia's Defense Minister, whose country spends a whopping 1 percent of GDP, supporting Ukraine watching the training, keen to get the tanks to Ukraine soonest.

HANNO PEVKUR, ESTONIAN DEFENSE MINISTER: I really hope that it's not too late. I really hope because we all understand that there is a push from Russians coming in a very, like coming months, or coming weeks even.

ROBERTSON (on camera): So is this a make or break moment in the next few months in this war?

PEVKUR: Probably so it's once again, when there will be no breakthrough in the coming weeks and months, then probably we will end or we will step into the very long time of war.

ROBERTSON (voice over): This operation ongoing for another week as elsewhere, Ukrainian troops begin to get their hands on peace like these. How quickly they can use them effectively, will impact well beyond Ukraine?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON: And that note of caution from the Defense Minister, of course, very concerning for Western Leaders allies of Ukraine, because if the war does stall into a protracted trench warfare lasting years, of course, you know, countries like Estonia close the conflict very much understand what's at stake here contributing 1 percent of their GDP to help.

But other nations further away other European allies and partners of Ukraine, their populations are going to already being hit with hard economic times can begin to feel that this war is going too long. And that's the concern to keep the support going.

And that means if the war gets dragged out, the support may dwindle. And that comes back to the importance of getting the Ukrainians trained on the tanks, which is now happening and getting them into action effectively, Max.

FOSTER: OK. Nic in Estonia, thank you for that! As China has confirmed that it's the owner of a balloon spotted over Latin America this weekend. The Chinese Foreign Ministry says the balloon was used for flight tests and seriously deviated from its course and entered Latin American airspace by mistake.

It comes as the U.S. Navy is working to recover the remnants of another suspected Chinese spy balloon is shut down by the U.S. military over the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday. China has accused the U.S. of overreacting. And the Foreign Ministry issued a statement urging the U.S. not to take further actions that harm China's interests. CNN's Will Ripley joins me now from Taipei. I mean this story just keeps coming back.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's the balloon that even when it has now been popped, so to speak, it's still, you know, making ripples around the world. And partially because it is now becoming clear that the United States and Latin America are not the only places where these suspected Chinese spy balloons have been seen in the skies in recent years.

There have been several sightings here in Taiwan as recently as just about a year ago. There were also sightings in Japan and we were looking at pictures today when speaking with an analyst about this and they are almost identical to the large white balloon with the solar panels at the bottom of them that the United States, you know, saw many American citizens saw when they just looked up and took pictures.

It was certainly unsettling for people in the U.S. to have this, you know, suspected surveillance balloon over their homes, but it is commonplace here in Taiwan, of course, not just balloons, but drones and military aircraft regularly encroach upon this island's self- declared air defense identification zone.

Sometimes the drones fly right into Taiwanese airspace in oversensitive areas like military bases. The Taiwanese government says that it may be a shorter voyage, the next time that a spy billing from China is detected in other countries now that America has set this example by shooting it down.

And, of course, we could expect potentially the Chinese now that they have admitted that they own these balloons, they might be asking the United States to return the pieces of the balloon record without a whole lot of scrutiny from that FBI lab in Virginia.

There is, you know, some historical precedent here actually, it was flipped around the other way Max more than 20 years ago back into 2001 when an American spy plane made an emergency landing on China's Hainan Island it took three months for China to return that plane to the U.S.

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RIPLEY: Its crew was set free in a matter of days. But when they didn't turn the plane Max, it was in little pieces the Chinese picked it apart, they can certainly expect the Americans will be doing the exact same thing as they recovered that balloon wreckage.

FOSTER: Will it is fascinating, isn't it? Thank you for joining us from Taipei. Search and rescue teams in Syria and Turkey bracing for more bad weather racing against time to find survivors after a deadly earthquake hit that region an update on this rapidly developing situation just ahead for you.

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FOSTER: The desperate search for survivors continues in Turkey and Syria. This after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the region in the early morning hours. The death toll has been steadily climbing and stands at 17 rather 1900 right now across the two countries. Buildings and homes came crashing down on people whilst they slept.

Meanwhile, powerful aftershocks continue to violently shake the region. Deaths are reported in Northern Syria, including in the Northwest region, largely controlled by anti- government forces amid the country's civil war. Well, these images from a town north of Gaziantep a little girl being pulled from the rubble alive. We don't know anything more about her or her family.

You can see here snow on the ground that will make the rescue work even more difficult and also very difficult of course for the survivors. The people who survived the quake have lost their homes. They'll have difficult nights to come.

All the more reason to get international aid in as quickly as possible that little girl hope for rescue workers that they've really been holding out for. Earlier CNN spoke to Dr. Mazen Kewara. He is the Middle East Director for the Syrian Medical, the Syrian American Medical Society. He spoke from his car where he was sheltering with his family in Gaziantep, Turkey.

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DR. MAZEN KEWARA, MIDDLE EAST DIRECTOR, SYRIAN AMERICAN MEDICAL SOCIETY: We cannot use the buildings anymore for maybe hours maybe till tomorrow, I don't know. Because we are continuing experiencing aftershocks adequate so the last one was 7.6 so it's very, very strong.

So we cannot go back to our buildings and apartments. This situation before the earthquake was very dire and catastrophe especially in the areas of the rebel controlled areas in Northwest Syria. So unfortunately, this earthquake came to make things very, very, very challenging to us as humanitarian organization to be able to respond to the humanitarian needs there.

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DR. KEWARA: So as you know the situation before that we were very - it was very challenging situation because of the winter circumstances and lack funding the evolution of currency value. So everything was against the simple civilians there. The earthquake came right now to maybe make the final hit to those communities.

I don't know I cannot explain to you right now what the situation? We have four of our hospitals - damaged severely by the earthquake. We have evacuated two of them because of the earthquake. And the number of collapsed buildings in Northern Syria is huge. So I don't know - I don't know what to tell you.

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FOSTER: Just one story there and there will be many more to come. I'm Max Foster in London. Our breaking coverage on the devastating earthquake that has hit Turkey and Syria we'll continue in just a moment.

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