The G20 is ready to send immediate aid to Haiti, devastated by a powerful earthquake that may have left thousands dead.

While there are as yet no firm figures on the death toll, the island nation's Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive told CNN earlier on Thursday that he believed "well over 100,000" people died in Tuesday's quake.

"We the G20 reaffirm our readiness and commitment to send immediate economic and in kind assistance to attend to the basic human needs of the Haitian population at this time of hardship," a statement said.

The quake, whose epicenter was located only 10 km from the capital of Port-au-Prince, also destroyed many buildings, including the UN headquarters and the presidential palace.

The Group of 20 leading economies is made up of Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Britain, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Canada, China, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, the United States, Turkey, France, South Africa, South Korea, Japan and the European Union.

MOSCOW, January 14 (RIA Novosti)