Indian FM Speaks to his Counterparts from US, Russia, Saudi, Oman and Brazil

NEW DELHI: Foreign Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday spoke with Russian and American counterparts on joint fight against Covid-19 besides reviewing Afghan situation. He also spoke with his counterparts from Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Oman.

In a series of tweets he gave overview of his conversations.

“Good to speak with FM Sergey Lavrov of #Russia. Discussed the forthcoming #BRICS Foreign Ministers Meeting. Also reviewed recent developments pertaining to Afghanistan. Our cooperation on #coronavirus reflects our special friendship,” Jaishankar tweeted. Russia holds current BRICS Presidency and the Foreign Ministers will meet through a video meet on April 28.

Good to speak with FM Sergey Lavrov of #Russia. Discussed the forthcoming #BRICS Foreign Ministers Meeting. Also re… https://t.co/BYuloB5S3O — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) 1587651833000

“Nice to hear from @SecPompeo of #UnitedStates. Discussed our #coronavirus responses and the importance of international cooperation. Working closely on its implications and consequences. Also exchanged views on the Afghanistan situation,” the Minister tweeted.

Nice to hear from @SecPompeo of #UnitedStates. Discussed our #coronavirus responses and the importance of internati… https://t.co/vtotxDXI0Y — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) 1587652201000

State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus, said, “Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo spoke today with Indian Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar. Secretary Pompeo and Minister Jaishankar discussed bilateral and international cooperation to contain and mitigate COVID-19, including ensuring the availability of pharmaceutical and medical supplies.”

“Productive conversation with FM @ernestofaraujo of #Brazil. Reviewed in detail the follow up of President @jairbolsonaro’s visit. Also exchanged notes on global issues, including the #coronavirus pandemic,” Jaishankar said in his tweet.

Productive conversation with FM @ernestofaraujo of #Brazil. Reviewed in detail the follow up of President… https://t.co/KkeqpFZXG8 — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) 1587652041000

“Appreciated the very warm conversation with HH Prince Faisal, FM of #SaudiArabia. Thanked him for taking care of the Indian community there. Discussed our shared interest in ensuring health and food security. India will remain a reliable partner,” the Minister said referring to India’s fruits and vegetable supplies to Saudi Arabia.

Appreciated the very warm conversation with HH Prince Faisal, FM of #SaudiArabia. Thanked him for taking care of th… https://t.co/dB9AZTS71F — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) 1587652339000

He also spoke with his counterpart from Oman. “Very pleased to speak with FM Yusuf Alawi. Appreciated #Oman’s taking care of the Indian community there. As trusted partners, assured him of India’s support in the collective fight against #coronavirus.”

Very pleased to speak with FM Yusuf Alawi. Appreciated #Oman’s taking care of the Indian community there. As truste… https://t.co/TrhTBStqGN — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) 1587652533000

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that the Ministry has been playing a key role in the Empowered Group that deals with ensuring availability of essential medical equipment and supplies. “Our Missions/Posts have been at the forefront of our efforts to ensure expeditious and time-bound implementation of plans for procurement from overseas suppliers. Our Missions in various parts of the world are involved every step of the way in this exercise. Their role extends from scouting the market, tapping commercial opportunities, facilitating supply contracts, closely coordinating on the ground in ensuring that deliveries take place in a timely manner,” Srivatsava said.

“As a result of these efforts, we have started receiving some of the equipment, and expect further supplies of test kits, PPEs, masks etc. in the coming weeks. In the past two weeks, around two dozen flights departed for India from five cities in China carrying nearly 400 tonnes of medical supplies, including RT-PCR test kits, Rapid Antibody Tests, PPE kits, thermometers etc. Around 20 more flights are expected to bring supplies from China in the coming days, and this is likely to be stepped up considerably in the next few months as our procurement efforts gain momentum. We are also facilitating collaboration between Indian and foreign agencies in research & development efforts (such as on Remdesivir, PLX Cells etc.) related to COVID-19,” the spokesperson added.

One significant development in this regard has been that through coordination with concerned agencies in India, arrangements were enabled whereby the Indian subsidiary of a South Korean company has commenced production of Covid-19 rapid anti-body testing kits in its plant in Manesar, Haryana with a capacity of 5 lakh tests per week. The first batch has already rolled out on April 19. “This is an excellent example of our ‘Make in India for world’. The company will ramp up production to meet the growing demand in India as well as other parts of the world,” according to Srivatsava.

“Our Mission has also signed a contract on behalf of ICMR with another South Korean company to procure and supply 5 lakh Corona Testing Kits. Six SUV-sized high speed testing machines, which are in high demand, are being sourced from Roche in USA; our R&D labs are in touch with labs in Israel and Germany which are undertaking cutting edge work.”

In keeping with our standing as a major and responsible supplier of pharmaceutical products to the world, India has been providing humanitarian aid and commercial supplies including HCQs and paracetamol.

India has gifted 5 million HCQ tablets to countries in the neighbourhood and the IOR, Africa, Latin America, Central Asia, Eurasia and WANA regions. “We are also providing 1.32 million PCM tablets to our neighbouring and other partner countries. Apart from HCQ and PCM, we are also providing a big basket of other medical aid which includes essential drugs and life-saving antibiotics; medical consumable; and other equipment for laboratories and hospitals. Value of the total medicines and other supplies to be gifted by India stands at INR 383 million (about USD 5 million)”, Srivatsava said, adding, “In addition to this, we have given clearance to commercial consignments of around 285 million HCQ tablets to 40 countries. Commercial consignments of around 500 million PCM tablets for 60 countries have also been cleared.”

India has also responded promptly to requests for deployment of Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) comprising doctors, nurses and paramedics. These RRTs are ready for deployment at short notice and have so far been deployed in Maldives and Kuwait at the request of their governments. These RRTs have helped train and exchange best practices with local medical professionals on various aspects of dealing with the pandemic.

---

Source: ET

---