ISLAMABAD – Special Chinese plane carrying relief assistance and a team of doctors to fight Coronavirus arrived in Islamabad on Saturday afternoon.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, NDMA Chairman Lt. General Muhammad Afzal, Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood, and Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing received the assistance.
The Chinese doctors will remain in Pakistan for two weeks and advise health care specialists of Pakistan in the light of their experience and success in battling Covid-19 in China.
China’s assistance to Pakistan so far includes 12,000 test kits, three million masks, 10,000 protective suits and four million dollars to build an isolation hospital.
Xinjiang government has also provided 50,000 masks each to the Federal Capital as well as to Sindh government.
Talking to media after receiving the medical equipment at the airport, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said China has expressed solidarity with Pakistan by providing medicines, necessary equipment and testing kits to help it fight Covid-19.
He thanked Chinese government and people for the assistance.
He said it is government’s top priority to protect health workers, who have put their lives in danger, while taking care of Coronavirus patients.
Foreign Minister said the number of ventilators and the testing capacity will be doubled.
He said a walk-through scanner will also arrive in Pakistan, which will enhance testing capacity considerably.
He expressed confidence that Pakistani medical staff will benefit from the experience of Chinese doctors to treat the Coronavirus patients.
