Two Chinese aircraft deliver flood relief items

ISLAMABAD: Two Chinese relief flights carrying humanitarian assistance for Pakistan’s flood victims arrived in Rawalpindi on Sunday, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said, praising the gesture as a reflection of the warm ties between the two countries.

“Two Chinese relief flights carrying 300 tents and 9,000 blankets landed today at Nur Khan Air Base, to support families displaced by the recent floods,” the NDMA said in a statement.It said the provision of relief items underscored China’s enduring solidarity with Pakistan in times of difficulty.The authority said the assistance would help augment the NDMA’s relief support for Punjab’s flood-hit areas. Federal Minister Amir Muqam received the items at the air base, along with NDMA Chairman Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik and China’s Ambassador to Pakistan Jian Zaidong.

Senior officials of the NDMA and the Pakistani foreign ministry were also present. Muqam thanked the people and government of China for their “prompt support,” noting that the assistance will bring much-needed relief to thousands of flood-affected families. He said Pakistan was mobilising all available resources to ensure swift relief and recovery efforts in the flood-hit areas. The minister reaffirmed the government of Pakistan’s resolve, in coordination with NDMA and with the support of friendly countries like China, to overcome the challenges posed by the floods and ensure the rehabilitation of the affected population.

The relief items arrived days after the Chinese embassy announced that Beijing would offer Pakistan humanitarian items worth $14 million. It was in addition to Beijing extending $2 million in emergency assistance to Islamabad last month to deal with the deadly floods.