Turkey sends medical equipment to Bangladesh to fight COVID-19

Turkey made its largest delivery of medical equipment to Bangladesh Wednesday to contribute to the country's efforts against the novel coronavirus.

A Turkish cargo airliner brought 20 ventilator monitor units, 20 ventilator stand units, 20 ventilator accessory sets, 10,000 N95 masks, 10,000 medical gowns, 10,000 coverall sets, 2,000 face shields and 5,000 protective goggles, according to a statement by the Turkish embassy in Dhaka.

Following a visit by Bangladeshi Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen to Turkey's capital Ankara on Sept. 14-16, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan instructed his country's Health Ministry to provide the medical supplies as a gesture of friendship and goodwill, said the statement.

Turkey's ambassador to Bangladesh, Mustafa Osman Turan, handed over the materials to Momen at the state guest house, Padma.

"This medical equipment assistance aims to the successful efforts of Bangladesh to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is the fourth time Turkey extended its helping hand to Bangladesh, and it is also the largest medical assistance to Bangladesh, so far," Turan said.

Turkey stands ready to provide all kinds of support to Bangladesh in these difficult times, he added.

The South Asian nation reported a total of 403,079 positive cases of coronavirus with 5,861 deaths and 80% recovery rate so far.

For his part, Momen said Erdogan had sent the delivery in a special gesture as a gift to Bangladesh.

"I was lucky to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in my last month's visit to Turkey. We both discussed bilateral issues including how to accelerate the existing economic ties between the two countries," Momen said.

Erdogan expressed interest in boosting relations with Bangladesh at the meeting with several proposals to further strengthen economic relations, he added.

"We will implement those proposals gradually which could strengthen the bilateral relationship especially in the trade and business field," he said, citing remarks by Erdogan that trade between Bangladesh and Turkey should exceed $2 billion.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is expected to visit Dhaka soon, he added, noting that if the coronavirus pandemic subsides, a visit by Erdogan was also expected in March next year to mark the 100th birth anniversary of the country's founding father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.