Air India flies oxygen concentrators from US as Biden, Harris assure help amid COVID-19 surge

The President was spending his weekend at his home in Delaware but is believed to be following up the developments in India. The US is working closely with the Indian government to rapidly deploy additional support and supplies during an alarming COVID-19 outbreak. As we provide assistance, we pray for the people of India including its courageous healthcare workers, Harris said in a tweet.

The tweets by Biden and Harris are the first reactions by the top American leadership after the recent outbreak of the deadly COVID19 pandemic in India. The two have been criticized by friends of India in the US, including some of their own party leaders, for slow response to the American help to their natural ally.

Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said she has been in close touch with Foreign Secretary Harshvardhan Shringla and India’s Ambassador to US Taranjit Singh Sandhu in recent days on the issue.

The American people stand in solidarity with our friends in India during these difficult times. We are rapidly providing therapeutics, ventilators, PPE, raw material for vaccines, and more, Sherman said.

Earlier on Sunday, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke to his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval during which the White House announced that it is urgently sending medical supplies and equipment to save lives in India.

The Indian-American community, which had been critical of the Biden administration so far, welcomed the move.