Indonesia sends 1,400 oxygen concentrators to India through Red Cross Society

Expressing solidarity and support to India to fight against COVID-19, Indonesia has donated 1,400 oxygen concentrators to the country through the Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS).

"As a form of support and solidarity towards India, who has shown great composure against COVID-19, the Government and the people of the Republic of Indonesia sent 1,400 units of oxygen cylinders through Indian Red Cross Society," according to a statement released by the Indonesian consulate general in Mumbai on Wednesday.

Indonesian consul general Agus P Saptono received the oxygen concentrators at the port and handed them over to IRCS for further distribution.

The assistance reflects the spirit of the two countries' togetherness in facing the pandemic and aims to help India get through a difficult time caused by a surge in COVID-19 cases, Saptono said in the statement.

The pandemic is a common problem facing all countries, so they need to build strong collaborations to resolve it, he added.

Meanwhile, IRCS' regional passport officer (Maharashtra), who represented the Indian Foreign Ministry, expressed appreciation and gratitude to Indonesia for the assistance, which, he said, would be very useful to handle the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

Indonesia and India have good cooperation and support each other, Saptono said adding, the cooperation has lasted more than 70 years, and India is one of Indonesia's strategic partners.

"With the assistance from Indonesia, we hope the cooperation between the two countries will increasingly become stronger in the future, particularly in facing the COVID-19 pandemic," he remarked.

As an old and close ally and strategic partner, Indonesia has kept abreast of the developments of the pandemic in India and is ready to respond to urgent requirements for oxygen supplies to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in the South Asian country, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno L. P. Marsudi had stated earlier.

( With inputs from ANI )