The United States mobilised an airlift of critical health supplies that arrived in Islamabad Saturday to help the country combat the coronavirus outbreak, Voice of America reported.
The donation includes tens of thousands of “critically needed and requested” personal protective items for healthcare professionals, hundreds of oximeters and other supplies, the US embassy said.
1/2 ARRIVED from the United States to Pakistan: Life-saving medical assistance, including personal protective equipment, pulse oximeters, and other supplies to meet the urgent needs of the Pakistani people.
To read more: https://t.co/6kGBETciAW#COVID19 #USPAK pic.twitter.com/HvHzRds2MQ
— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) June 5, 2021
“Today, the United States continues our proud partnership with the government of Pakistan in our fight against the Covid-19 pandemic,” American Chargé d’affaires Lesslie Viguerie said in a press statement.
“Pakistan is not alone in its fight against the coronavirus,” Viguerie said.
Washington has allocated more than $40 million to Islamabad for Covid-19 response assistance, including a donation of 200 ventilators, to care for those suffering from the disease.
The support, US officials said, has benefited more than 2.5 million people across the country, providing life-saving treatment, strengthening case-finding and surveillance, and mobilizing innovative financing to bolster emergency preparedness.
Foreign Office spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said his government “greatly appreciates” US assistance.
“This timely gesture is part of the continued assistance that the US has provided to Pakistan to support our Covid relief and prevention efforts,” Chaudhri said.
Pakistan has reported more than 21,000 deaths among at least 930,000 cases of coronavirus infections since the pandemic hit the country of about 220 million early last year.
Islamabad recently received 1.2 million doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and 100,000 Pfizer doses under the United Nations-backed COVAX program launched to support the purchase and delivery of Covid-19 vaccine to 92 low- and middle-income countries.
