The EU is mobilising to help the victims of the earthquake in Haiti

The Spanish Secretary of State for the EU, Diego López Garrido, stated, on behalf of the ministers for Europe that are taking part in the meeting in La Granja (Segovia), that they have been informed about 'the horrific earthquake that has hit Haiti and that the EU has immediately mobilised to help the victims'.

'All the EU's institutions, especially those most involved with humanitarian affairs, such as ECHO, are working to provide an efficient response to this situation,' he said during a press conference.

'Spain,' he went on, 'as the Presidency of the EU Council, is in close contact with the High Representative, Catherine Ashton, and there will therefore be the most coordinated response possible to the tragedy in Haiti from the EU.'

The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, then stepped forward to deliver a message of 'solidarity, affection and support' to the Haitian people and the authorities.

The minister, who is taking part in one of the work sessions at the informal meeting of ministers, confirmed on arriving in La Granja that the Presidency is in contact with the High Representative and with the European Commission 'to set in motion all the EU's aid mechanisms'.

He confirmed that Brussels will send a plane this afternoon with a team of experts to assess the situation and help the Haitian authorities, and he added that Spain has offered the operational base which the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation has in Panama, both to the High Representative and to all of the Member States so that humanitarian aid reaches Haiti.