Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the ceremony of presenting credentials at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Feb. 5, 2020. (Xinhua/Bai Xueqi)
Russia is sending the US medical equipment to help fight the coronavirus outbreak, the Interfax news agency reported on Tuesday, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
President Vladimir Putin made the proposal in a phone conversation with US President Donald Trump on Monday, when they discussed the coronavirus and oil markets.
“Trump gratefully accepted this humanitarian aid,” Interfax quoted Peskov as saying. A Russian plane with medical and protective equipment may leave for the US on Tuesday, he added.
For a second day in a row, the US recorded more than 500 new deaths as the total climbed to over 4,000, according to a Reuters tally of officially reported data.
In the process of agreeing on the details for the medical supplies on Tuesday, “it seems that some on the American side at least did not contribute to the prompt resolution of technical issues in accordance with the agreements of the two presidents”, Peskov was quoted as saying by Interfax.
“It is important to note that when offering assistance to the US colleagues, the president (Putin) assumes that when US manufacturers of medical equipment and materials gain momentum, they will also be able to reciprocate if necessary,” he added.
He said that Russia and China cooperated in a similar fashion now as “at a time when the current situation affects everyone without exception…, there is no alternative to working together in a spirit of partnership and mutual assistance.”
Washington has said that Trump and Putin agreed in the call it was important to stabilize the global energy markets.
