Armenian expert: Erdogan's Turkey an 'extremely dangerous enemy' even now

The quake-hit Turkey is an “extremely dangerous enemy” of Armenia even now, says Iran specialist Vardan Voskanyan, head of the Chair of Iranian Studies at Yerevan State University (YSU).

"Against the backdrop of the humanitarian crisis in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Turkey, Erdogan's regime is suffering huge, and in some cases, I believe, irreversible blow to its internal and external image,” he wrote on Facebook on Wednesday.

“The propaganda myth of Erdogan's Turkey steadily and defiantly solving all its problems is fading away with footage of the personal tragedies of ordinary Turkish citizens left by the state in a state of despair and helplessness.

“Given the common misconception that "that's it, Turkey is neutralized" that arises in such cases, I have to say that such an approach cannot be taken seriously and Erdogan's Turkey is an extremely dangerous enemy even at the moment, so we should not indulge in illusions,” Voskanyan stressed.

The death toll from the devastating earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria on Monday has reached at least 9,638, CNN reports, citing authorities.

In Turkey, the death toll has risen to at least 7,108, with 40,910 others reported injured, according to Turkey’s disaster and management presidency SAKOM.

In Syria, at least 2,530 people have been reported killed in both government-controlled areas and rebel-held regions.