Hyderabad: Extending a helping hand to India during the raging pandemic, Turkey has dispatched medical aid to India in two aircrafts from Ankara’s Etimesgut Airport on Tuesday.
“Our two aircrafts have departed from Ankara’s Etimesgut Airport with health materials for tackling #COVID19 to be delivered to India,” the Turkish defence ministry said in a tweet.
According to Anadolu agency, the A400M planes departed from Etimesgut Air Base in the Capital Ankara and were carrying medical supplies, including 630 oxygen tubes, five oxygen generators, 50 ventilators and 50,000 boxes of tablet medicines prepared by the Turkish Red Crescent and Turkey’s Health Ministry.
“There is hope after despair and many suns after darkness,” the boxes of aid bore the words of 13th century poet and Islamic scholar, Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi. Additionally, the message said, “with love from Turkey to the people of India.”
Ibrahim Altan, the director-general of the Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay), stated that they sent the aid at the orders of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and with help from Turkey’s Foreign Ministry along with the ministries of health, industry and technology, and defense.
“India sent aid to our country during both the Balkan Wars and the War of Independence and has always stood with us in trying times. Today we are sending aid to them,” Altan added, referring to Turkish-Indian ties dating back well over a century.
Anadolu agency said that the aid will be delivered to the Indian Red Cross.
Daily Sabah said this is a part of Turkey’s medical aid campaign which embodies Ankara’s humanitarian foreign policy. Last year Turkey delivered medical aid to 150 countries.