Blinken praises India for supporting US during Covid-19 outbreak

Washington DC: US State Secretary Antony Blinken during the ministerial forum on resilient supply chain appreciated India’s steadfastness in supporting the country by providing medicines at a time when the US was hit badly by the Covid-19 outbreak.

“Back in 2020 when Covid-19 was hitting Americans the hardest, India provided medicines and bio-supplies to the United States,” Blinken said at the Supply Chain Ministerial Forum while praising India. India had sanctioned lakhs of Hydroxychloroquine tablets to the US. Hydroxychloroquine is an anti-malarial drug deemed to be useful in dealing with Covid-19.

Blinken and Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo co-hosted a Supply Chain Ministerial Forum on July 19-20, 2022, to further build cooperation with stakeholders and key partner nations on supply chains.

India came to the assistance of the United States during this country’s time of need, and now the United States stands with the people of India as they continue to battle the Covid-19 pandemic, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) had said.

In June 2021, USAID also announced $41 million in support to help India respond to the Covid-19 pandemic and strengthen the country’s preparedness for Covid-19 and future health emergencies.

Officials from Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Korea, Singapore, Spain, and the United Kingdom participated in the meeting.

“The shocks to global supply chains from pandemics, wars and conflicts, extreme climate impacts, and natural disasters have put in stark relief the urgent need to further strengthen supply chains, to work to reduce and end near-term disruptions, and to build long-term resilience,” the participants said in a joint statement at the conclusion of the virtual event.

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