United Nations, March 3: India, which has shipped critical supplies of COVID-19 vaccines to nations globally, has said it stands ready to work with the United Nations and its agencies to ensure the doses are delivered to people of Syria facing “dire” situation compounded by the pandemic, winterisation and food insecurity.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly high-level panel on the human rights situation in Syria on Tuesday, India’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador K Nagaraj Naidu said India continues to stand with the people of Syria in the grave hour of need.
“The 10-year long Syrian conflict has brought about much suffering to the Syrian people,” he said.
“The country is facing a dire situation compounded by COVID-19, winterisation and food insecurity which is putting into peril the future of 17 million Syrians, including 6.2 million displaced people,” he added.
India has extended 12 million dollars in humanitarian assistance through bilateral and multilateral channels and last July, more than 10 MT (metric tonnes) of medicine supplies have been delivered to help Syria cope with the pandemic.
Earlier this month, more than 2000 MT of food supplies were delivered.
“We also stand ready to work with the UN and its agencies to ensure COVID-19 vaccines can be brought to the aid and assistance of the people of Syria,” Naidu said.
India’s efforts and contribution towards providing critical supplies of the COVID-19 vaccines around the world are being widely applauded, with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres hailing India for being a “global leader in pandemic response efforts” for having provided critical medicines, diagnostic kits, ventilators and personal protective equipment to more than 150 countries.
Under the initiative “Vaccine Maitri”, which translates into Vaccine Friendship, India is providing vaccines to the world.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had told the Security Council last month that while India is a significant source of supply to the COVAX facility, the country is also directly sending vaccines to friends and partners. (PTI)
