Bolivia fires have burned more than 700,000 hectares

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(CNN) - While global attention is focused on the destructive Amazon forest fires in Brazil, devastating fires have decimated areas of tropical forests and savannas in the neighboring country of Bolivia.

More than 728,000 hectares (1.8 million acres) have been burned in Bolivia, which led President Evo Morales to suspend his re-election campaign on Sunday, according to the Bolivian Information Agency (ABI).

The country had 13,396 fires in August, an increase of 422% over the previous month, according to the National Space Research Institute (INPE) of Brazil.

On Monday, Morales said 4,000 state employees and volunteers were fighting the flames, which according to Reuters are burning endlessly in areas near Bolivia's border with Brazil and Paraguay.

"Nothing is more valuable than our Mother Earth," Morales wrote on Twitter.

I repeat the call to work together with only one objective: to preserve our Chiquitania regardless of cost or effort; Nothing is more valuable than our Mother Earth. No effort will be enough if we do not act together at this crucial hour. #UnityInAdversity

- Evo Morales Ayma (@evoespueblo) August 26, 2019

"The damage of the fire in Chiquitanía puts the most valuable of our lives at risk: our environment," Morales tweeted. “We are a strong and dignified country, fighting together we have overcome many challenges in our history. Together we will pass that test. ”

The Amazon covers eight countries, including Bolivia, although most of the forests are in Brazil. The Amazon rainforest produces about 20% of the world's oxygen and plays an essential role in the fight against climate change.

Morales said at a conference on Sunday that the government had hired one of the world's largest airplanes, a Supertanker Boeing 747, and a fleet of smaller planes to put out the fires, according to the ABI agency.

He added that after a visit to certain places, mainly around Robore in eastern Bolivia, it was found that the fires had decreased by approximately 70%. However, in other areas, winds have rekindled fires in other areas, he said.

Morales also indicated that he would now accept international aid to fight the flames, saying he would participate in the initiatives proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron in the G7.

During Monday's G7 summit, Macron announced an emergency fund of $ 20 million to help Amazon countries affected by forest fires.

The fires occupy an area "twice the surface of France," Macron said after a G7 weather session on Monday, adding that France would provide military support to quell fires that damage the "most important lungs on the planet."

Claudia Domínguez, Vasco Cotovio and Natalie Gallon contributed to this report.