PM expresses sorrow over bushfire disasters in letter to Australian counterpart

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has written a letter to his Australian counterpart, PM Scott Morrison, and expressed sorrow over the damages and deaths caused by calamitous bushfire in Australia, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

PM Imran Khan offered support to the Australian premier Scott Morrison and expressed sympathy to the Australian nationals on behalf of the Pakistani nation. The premier said that he is consistently making the world aware of the challenges of environmental changes which cannot be fought solely by any country.

The premier expressed hopes that the crisis will create an opportunity for all countries to jointly face the climate-related challenges. He reiterated that Pakistan is ready to provide assistance to the Australian government in view of its close friendly ties.

The bushfires have killed at least 27 people, destroyed more than 2,000 homes and burnt 10 million hectares (100,000 square kilometres) of land — an area larger than South Korea or Portugal.

Australia endures bushfires every summer.

However, climate change and a prolonged drought have contributed to the current crisis, with the blazes starting much earlier than normal and lasting for far longer.

Australia experienced its driest and hottest year on record in 2019, with its highest average maximum temperature of 41.9 degrees Celsius (107.4 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded in mid-December.

The fires have prompted an outpouring of donations from around the world to help communities and devastated animal populations.

Environmental groups estimate one billion animals have been killed, many of them unique to Australia.

The country’s environment minister Sussan Ley has warned that in some areas, koalas may have to be reclassified as endangered.