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Coronavirus pandemic

Russia to accept US offer of ventilators, should such need arise — Kremlin

On April 16, Trump announced Washington’s readiness to provide ventilators to Russia as a coronavirus aid

© Stanislav Krasilnikov/TASS

MOSCOW, April 16. /TASS/. Russia will accept the US’s offer to provide ventilators to fight the coronavirus, should such need arise, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

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"Should such need arise, of course, Russia would accept such very nice offer," Peskov told journalists.

He recapped Russian President Vladimir Putin’s opinion that "a pandemic or a threat of a pandemic is the kind of time when everyone must help each other and use all available options to protect their citizens and their health."

The Kremlin spokesman underscored that Moscow perceived the US offer "very positively." On April 16, US President Donald Trump announced Washington’s readiness to provide ventilators to Russia as a coronavirus aid, calling Russian aid to the US a "very nice" gesture.

According to Peskov, "the US President told Putin during their recent phone call" about his readiness to provide aid to Russia.

"The US had a period when they only began to ramp up the ventilator production, and their industry had not revved up yet, and at that point the aid was provided [by Russia]," the spokesman said, adding that "President Trump said during the phone call that the US industry is revving up now."

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the medical equipment, delivered to the US from Russia was partially paid for by the Russian Direct Investment Fund, and partially - by the US.

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Russia to raise issue of Ukrainian strikes on Rylsk at UNSC meeting on Friday — diplomat

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