Turkey assures solidarity with US in COVID-19 fight

By Andac Hongur

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Turkish president assured “all means of solidarity” with the US in “combatting the coronavirus outbreak and normalization process after the pandemic.”

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to his US counterpart Donald Trump together with the medical aid that Turkey sent to the US on Tuesday to support the country’s fight against the coronavirus as it has reported over one million confirmed cases.

Erdogan said he hopes the aid helps US people recover from COVID-19, voicing strong belief that they will come over this crisis as soon as possible with wisdom.

The Turkish leader also assured his US counterpart that Turkey will show all kinds of solidarity as "a reliable and strong ally".

Prepared under the instructions of Erdogan and by Turkey's National Defense Ministry, the medical aid included 500,000 surgical masks, 4,000 overalls, 2,000 liters of disinfectant, 1,500 goggles, 400 N-95 masks and 500 face shields, according to the Turkish presidency.

Turkey has helped at least 57 countries, including Italy, Spain and the UK, and it still remains the world's third largest provider of humanitarian aid during the pandemic.

*Writing by Dilara Hamit