(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 14 - Greece, Spain, Bulgaria, Montenegro, and Albania have activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to combat forest fires that are raging across Europe at the same time. Yesterday, Spain activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism for the first time ever for forest fires. In Montenegro, the Commission has deployed rescEU assets stationed in the Czech Republic, Croatia, and Italy. Serbia, Hungary, and Bosnia and Herzegovina have also deployed aircraft as part of bilateral offers, while Austria has offered ground firefighting teams. The EU Civil Protection Mechanism has already been activated 16 times during the current fire season, as European countries battle a heatwave accompanied by a high number of catastrophic forest fires across the continent. (ANSA).