Egypt extends essential help to coronavirus-hit states

Nahla Abdelmonem

Egypt has been working hard to help countries strongly affected by the coronavirus since the virus appeared.

So far, Egypt sent medical supplies to Italy, China and the UK, at a time assistance is turning into a foreign policy tool.

China

Egyptian Minister of Health Hala Zayed decided to visit China at the height of coronavirus outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan in early March. Zayed took with her a large shipment of medical supplies and needs. She also took with her a message of solidarity from the Egyptian people and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to the Chinese people and government.

Chinese officials expressed appreciation of the Egyptian support. A plenipotentiary minister at the Chinese embassy in Cairo said in April that his country would not forget Egyptian assistance to it.

Italy

Italy too was battling the disease and badly in need of assistance.

This was why Egypt sent another shipment of medical supplies to the European country. The shipment contained essential needs.

In response, the Italian foreign minister Luigi Di Maio, who received the shipment at the airport, thanked the Egyptian government on Facebook.

In early April, Zayed also visited Italy to hand over another shipment of medical supplies. The shipment was made of two military cargo planes that carried important medical needs.

The Egyptian support came at a very critical time for Italy. This was a time when the coronavirus infection and mortality rates were very high in the European country.

Other European countries were busy minding the virus outbreak in them.

Britain and the United States

On April 14, a British minister said the Egyptian government was ready to send a shipment of medical supplies needed in her country.

The shipment came at a time UK hospitals suffered a shortage of medical equipment.

On April 21, President Sisi instructed the government to send a shipment of medical supplies to the U.S. The shipment contained essential medical supplies needed in the country that was at the height of its battle against the coronavirus then.