India was there for us and we will be there for them: US President Joe Biden

India was there for the American people in their hour of need and the United States will be there for the country as it meets its worstever public health crisis President Joe Biden said here after his phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi The two leaders spoke on Monday even as the Biden administration swung into action to provide assistance to India in its fight against the COVID19 pandemicThe urgent help announced by the White House ranged from oxygen supplies raw materials for COVID19 vaccines critical lifesaving drugs to PPEs India was there for us and we will be there for them Biden said in a tweet soon after his phone call with Modi This was the second telephonic conversation between the two leaders after Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States on January 20Today I spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and pledged Americas full support to provide emergency assistance and resources in the fight against COVID19 Biden said The call between the two leaders is believed to have lasted for about 45 minutes During the call Biden is understood to have offered all help that India needs in this hour of crisisThe president pledged Americas steadfast ongoing support for the people of India who have been impacted by the recent surge in the COVID19 cases White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference At Indias request the United States is exploring options to provide oxygen and related supplies The Department of Defense and USAID are pursuing options to provide oxygen generation systemsWe may be in a position to reroute shipments plan further countries with lower immediate needs given the urgency of the conditions in India and well have more details hopefully on the possibility soon she said The Department of Defense she said is also exploring providing field oxygen generation systems which the United States has used in its field medical hospitalsEach unit can provide oxygen for up to 50 to 100 beds The administration is also exploring options to provide oxygen concentrators and ventilators and are in technical discussions with India to ensure the equipment that the US supplies can connect to Indian devices the official added The United States has already provided 200 ventilators to India last year and trained medical professionals on their use so this is of course in addition to that and other assistance we have provided Psaki saidAnother one of the major needs is PPE and we have identified US commercial suppliers as well We have identified US commercial suppliers of remdesivir that are immediately available to help relieve the suffering of COVID19 patients in India she said India has submitted a list of seven essential items that it needs on an urgent basis These are oxygen concentrators oxygen cylinders with 10 litre and 45 litre capacity oxygen generators oxygen generation plants remdesivir faviprivir and tocilizumabPsaki said the US has identified rapid diagnostic testing supplies personal protective equipment and additional ventilators available to be transferred to India immediately The US is in close touch with India officials at all levels about the raw material needs that they have she added As requested by India we will provide raw materials for the production of AstraZeneca Covishield vaccine at Serum Institute of India I know some of these have been announced but thats just a little bit of additional details So were and ongoing discussions about what their needs are and how we can meet them she saidResponding to a question Psaki said that the United States has been one of the largest providers of assistance to address the COVID19 pandemic around the world including to India We have obviously taken some significant steps over the last couple of days to address their immediate needs and been in close touch with them at every level including with prime minister and the president discussing or communicating she saidIndia and the United States she noted have two of the highest challenges as it relates to fighting the COVID pandemic so we also take that into account But I can assure people who are watching and paying attention that we want to work in partnership with India We are committed to getting them assistance they need whether thats oxygen PPE therapeutics tests raw materials for vaccines and well continue to communicate at the highest level Psaki saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever