Turkey sends 2nd batch of medical supplies to US amid coronavirus pandemic

A Turkish military cargo plane carrying a second batch of medical supplies departed for the U.S. on Thursday to deliver aid to its NATO ally battling the coronavirus pandemic.
"A second installment of medical supplies, prepared at the behest of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in order to help combat the COVID-19 outbreak, has departed Ankara onboard an aircraft from the Turkish armed forces," the Turkish Defense Ministry said on Twitter.
The aircraft was seen off by Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Yavuz Selim Kıran and U.S. Ambassador David Satterfield, alongside Turkish and U.S. military personnel.
The first installment of the medical aid supplies, which included 500,000 surgical masks, 4,000 overalls, 2,000 liters of disinfectant, 1,500 goggles, 400 N95 masks and 500 face shields, was sent on Tuesday.
A statement released by the Turkish Presidency noted that the cargo plane had arrived at Joint Base Andrews late Tuesday.
"As a global threat, the Coronavirus calls for global solidarity. Having donated medical supplies to 55 countries, Turkey has been the world’s third-largest provider of humanitarian aid during the COVID-19 pandemic," the statement said, adding that the country would continue to support other nations.

Similar to the packages sent to the U.K., the U.S.-bound aid boxes also carried a special note quoting 13th-century Sufi mystic Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi: "Where there is ruin, there is hope for a treasure," written in English and Turkish.
In a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump, Erdoğan said he was pleased about the Turkey-U.S. cooperation in the face of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Later in the day, the White House National Security Council released a Twitter message saying: “The United States thanks President @RTErdogan and our Turkish friends for their generous donation of medical supplies. We stand with #Turkey and our @NATO Allies as we combat #COVID19. We will get through this together, stronger than ever before.”
The U.S. European Command also shared a Twitter message thanking NATO ally Turkey with the hashtag #StrongerTogether.
Previously, Turkey sent medical aid to the U.K., Spain, Italy, Britain, Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Libya and Somalia with aims to combat the pandemic.
Since first appearing in Wuhan, China last December, the novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, has spread to at least 185 countries and regions, with the U.S. and Europe the hardest-hit.

More than 3.19 million cases have been reported worldwide, with the death toll surpassing 227,700 and more than 980,700 recoveries, according to data compiled by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.
The number of deaths from the novel coronavirus in the U.S. crossed the 60,000 mark Wednesday. Meanwhile, the same university's running tally counted 60,207 deaths and 1,030,487 cases as the U.S. struggles to curb the outbreak.
The U.S. continues to lead the world in the number of deaths from the virus and cases. Nearly 117,000 patients have recovered in the U.S., according to the data. New York state, the epicenter of the disease in the country, reported 23,384 deaths and 299,691 cases, followed by New Jersey with 6,771 and 116,365, respectively.