Blinken praises India for providing medicines during the Covid-19 outbreak to US

At the time of the ministerial forum on resilient supply chain, the State Secretary of the United States, Antony Blinken, appreciated India’s trustworthiness in supporting the country by providing medicines when the US was hit badly by the outbreak of the Covid-19 Pandemic.

Blinken said,” Back in 2020, when Covid-19 was hitting Americans the hardest, India provided medicines and bio-supplies to the United States”.

Hydroxychloroquine is an anti-malarial drug considered to be effective in dealing with Covid-19. India had approved lakhs of Hydroxychloroquine tablets to the US. India supported the United States during the time of the pandemic. So, the United States now stands with India as they continue to fight the battle against Covid-19, said the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

USAID also declared USD 41 million in assistance to help India respond to the Covid-19 pandemic and improve the country’s preparedness for Covid-19 and future health emergencies.

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

The participants after the virtual event said in a joint statement, “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 strengthen supply chains further, to work to reduce and end near-term disruptions, and to build long-term resilience.”