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India-US ties stronger than ever, says PM Modi as Trump thanks India for allowing hydroxychloroquine export

In a tweet on April 8, Trump praised PM Modi for his strong leadership and said that India's help during this crisis will not be forgotten.

April 09, 2020 / 10:59 IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on April 9 that the partnership between Indian and the US was stronger than ever.

He was replying to US President Donald Trump as he thanked India for allowing the export of the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine to the country.

In a tweet on April 8, Trump praised PM Modi for his strong leadership and said that India's help during this crisis would not be forgotten.

"Extraordinary times require even closer cooperation between friends. Thank you India and the Indian people for the decision on HCQ. Will not be forgotten!" he said.

"Thank you, Prime Minister for your strong leadership in helping not just India, but humanity, in this fight!" Trump said in his tweet that went viral. It was re-tweeted for more than 83,000 times and liked by over three lakh people.

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In response, PM Modi said that he fully agreed with the US president.

“Fully agree with you President Donald Trump. Times like these bring friends closer. The India-US partnership is stronger than ever,” PM Modi tweeted.

“India shall do everything possible to help humanity's fight against COVID-19,” said Modi, adding that “We shall win this together.”

Hydroxychloroquine has been identified by the US Food and Drug Administration as a possible treatment for the COVID-19. It is being tested on more than 1,500 coronavirus patients in New York.

Also Read: Explained | Is hydroxychloroquine really effective against coronavirus?

Anticipating that it will work, given initial positive results, Trump has bought more than 29 million doses of hydroxychloroquine for potential treatment of COVID-19 patients.

Also Read: How IPCA Labs is best suited to reap the hydroxychloroquine opportunity

India manufactures 70 percent of the world's supply of hydroxychloroquine, according to Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) secretary-general Sudarshan Jain. The drug is typically used to prevent or treat malaria.

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Moneycontrol News
first published: Apr 9, 2020 10:54 am

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