UAE sends more aid to Tajikistan in coronavirus fight

Twelve tonnes of medical supplies and testing kits sent to the Central Asian country

The equipment will help 12,000 medics in the Central Asian country fight back against Covid-19. Wam

The UAE sent a second aid plane to Tajikistan carrying 12 tonnes of medical supplies and testing kits.

The equipment will assist 12,000 medics in the Central Asian country as they battle the Covid-19 pandemic, Wam reported.

The aid was transported on an Etihad plane, which landed in the capital, Dushanbe, on Sunday. It follows a previous shipment sent in May.

"The UAE's generous gesture confirms once again its pioneering role in providing humanitarian aid globally, as well as the friendly relations between the peoples of the two countries," said Tajikistan's ambassador to the UAE, Sharifi Mahmudzoda.

"I am confident that, through joint efforts, we have achieved the desired result in combating this disease, and this step will lay a more solid foundation for bilateral relations and strengthen them in various fields."

Tajikistan is a landlocked country of almost 10 million people, bordered by Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, China and Kyrgyzstan. According to the World Health Organisation, the country has had about 10,000 cases of coronavirus and 79 deaths.

The UAE has sent more than 1,498 tonnes of aid to 118 countries since the crisis started, Wam said.