BARNAUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th February, 2020) Russia has sent two million disposable masks in humanitarian aid to China struggling with a coronavirus-caused outbreak of pneumonia and other severe respiratory diseases, Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov said on Tuesday.
"There is no fuss about the shortage of medical masks in Russia. We have sent 2 million masks to China in humanitarian aid," Manturov said during an appearance on Russia's Channel One.
According to his earlier statements, the output of masks in Russia totals 1.2 million daily with a potential of reaching 1.5 million should the need arise.
Last week, Russian Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov said that masks were among the items China had requested in aid from Russia, along with other deficit medical products, such as protective suits and goggles.
As the novel strain of coronavirus, COVID-2019, continues spreading across China and beyond, many countries and organizations send medical supplies and financial aid to help China fight the epidemic. Masks have become an essential everyday item for the medical staff and residents in the affected areas, primarily the central Hubei province and its quarantined capital city of Wuhan.
With a confirmed human-to-human transmission, the virus has sickened over 42,700 and killed over 1,000 in China. As of Tuesday, the infection toll outside of China has reached 393 cases with one confirmed fatality.
