China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, has sent a letter of solidarity with India to his counterpart S. Jaishankar which states that Beijing will do its utmost to provide help according to the needs of India to deter a devastating second covid-19 pandemic wave.
The letter dated 29 April was posted on Twitter by the Chinese ambassador in India, Sun Weidong, on Thursday.
India and China are in the midst of a military standoff in eastern Ladakh with talks over disengagement of troops, and de-escalation stuck over Beijing’s reluctance to pull back from key friction points.
“The coronavirus is a common enemy of mankind and the international community needs solidarity and cooperation for a concerted response. The Chinese side firmly supports the Indian government and the people in fighting the pandemic," the letter from Wang read.
“Anti-epidemic materials produced in China are entering India at a faster pace to help India fight the pandemic. The Chinese side will continue to do its utmost to provide support and help according to the needs of India," it added.
Covid-19 was first detected in China in November 2019 from where it spread across the world. India is in the grips of a ferocious second wave of the pandemic that has now claimed over 200,000 lives. The daily infections on Wednesday crossed the 370,000 mark and the number of daily deaths topped 3,600.
New Delhi has been cool to China’s offers of help with no official comments on accepting or welcoming the assistance. However, Indian companies and others are sourcing necessities sought urgently in India to fight the pandemic including oxygen concentrators and containers for instance from Hong Kong.
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