India provides $500,000 as aid to quake-hit Pacific Island state Vanuatu

India on Thursday said it will provide $500,000 as assistance to the Pacific Island state of Vanuatu for rehabilitation and reconstruction following a 7.3-magnitude earthquake last month that killed 14 people and injured hundreds. A security personnel stands next to a collapsed building in Vanuatu's capital Port Vila after a powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit the Pacific island on December 17. The relief assistance is being provided by India as a “close friend and partner under the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation and as a gesture of solidarity with the friendly people of Vanuatu”, the external affairs ministry said in a statement. Working with its partners in the Quad, India has launched a range of initiatives to benefit the Pacific Island states, mainly with an eye to counter China’s growing influence in the strategic region.