BEIJING, Aug. 7 -- Foreign experts and media have spoken highly of China's disaster relief efforts, saying China responded swiftly and efficiently to Sunday's deadly earthquake in its southwestern province of Yunnan.

The Chinese government responded to the earthquake quickly, and its rescue and relief work enabled those affected to have more confidence, said Nigerian scholar Ahmid Ibrahim.

Expressing his sympathy to China over the huge losses it has suffered, Ibrahim said that the earthquake was unpredictable and difficult to defend against, yet he believed China was able to help those affected return to their normal life soon.

Professor Bruce Malamud from the Department of Geography of King's College, London, said: "Looking at all the media that has come out, the news reports reporting on the effort, it has been a very rapid effort where they have mobilised a large number of resources and people."

The Chinese government is treating the situation very seriously in an area that is exceptionally economically deprived, he said.

In a statement, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton expressed "deepest condolences to the people of China for the loss of life and devastation caused by the earthquake in Yunnan Province in southwest China."

"Our thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones and we express our heartfelt sympathies to those who have been injured," the statement said. It added that the EU is closely following the situation and is ready to provide assistance as necessary.

Poland's Polskie radio highlighted that Chinese Premier Li Keqiang walked over five kilometers on bumpy roads to reach the quake's epicenter, and the Chinese government provided those affected with tents and foldaway beds.

Li and other Chinese officials visited the area to command the rescue and relief work, Russian news agency Interfax reported.

Russia's official news agency Itar-Tass also covered the quake, noting that China had sent military soldiers and policemen to the affected areas, who, together with the rescue personnel, rushed to search for survivors.

Romanian media reported that the Chinese government allocated 600 million RMB (about 97 million U.S. dollars) to the quake zone for relief efforts in Yunnan Province.

By Wednesday morning, the death toll from the 6.5-magnitude tremor had risen to 589, with nine people missing, according to the provincial civil affairs department.