India asks China to ease export of medical equipment, says it’s ‘best’ signal for ties
Hindustan TimesFacilitating India’s imports of Covid-19-related critical medical equipment and keeping the drug production supply chain open by China is the “best” signal for bilateral ties, Indian ambassador Vikram Misri said on Tuesday. India has now asked China to speed up the export of a large quantity of quality-checked medical equipment such as protective clothing, ventilators and testing kits from Chinese companies, Misri told a virtual news conference with Beijing-based Indian journalists and representatives of China’s official media. “So, it’s important at this time when not just the two countries but the rest of the world needs medicines and pharmaceuticals, for us to keep this product line open.” The figure for medical equipment and other materials being supplied by China to India is “enormously dynamic” because there are flights “taking off on almost a daily basis from Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen for India”, Misri said. Misri added: “Given our size, our position, I think there is considerable space for India and China to cooperate in controlling the spread of this pandemic and there are immediate short-term as well as medium- and long-term aspects to our cooperation.” The immediate aspect is cooperating in procuring “much-needed medical equipment and products in India, as our healthcare community and our healthcare fraternity, which is at the frontlines of facing this challenge, battles this outbreak”, he said.