People wait in line to refill empty medical oxygen cylinders for COVID-19 patients in front of a shop in New Delhi, India, April 26, 2021.(Photo: Xinhua)

China has reiterated its willingness to provide necessary support and assistance to India, and is now working on allocating medical supplies from Chinese enterprises to meet the surging demand in India, including oxygen concentrators, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday. 

Wang said China has expressed the willingness to provide India the necessary support in helping the South Asian country fight the epidemic. It's the third time Chinese Foreign Ministry expressed such willingness in the past few days. 

The current situation in India was described by the WHO as beyond heartbreaking. The nation has recorded more than 350,000 new cases every day, overwhelming local public health systems which are facing grave shortages of medical supplies and resources. 

"We are allocating and pushing forward Chinese companies in actively meeting India's demand for medical supplies such as oxygen concentrators, and China is willing to cooperate with India through multiple channels in helping it fight the epidemic, and we believe India can conquer it," the Chinese spokesperson said. 

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to meet with his counterparts from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh on Tuesday to discuss efforts to fight COVID-19 and post-pandemic economic recovery. 

The Chinese Embassy in India has also pledged to encourage and guide Chinese firms to cooperate with India to facilitate the acquisition of anti-epidemic supplies, according to a post published on Monday night. 

On Monday, 800 oxygen concentrators were airlifted from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to Delhi and 10,000 more will be sent in a week, the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka tweeted on Monday. It also wrote that "China is keeping in touch with India regarding urgent needs."

Global Times