Biden says U.S. set on helping India with pandemic

U.S. President Joe Biden says the U.S is determined to help India as it grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases.

Relatives mourn near a coffin containing the body of a person who died of COVID-19 in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Sunday, April 25, 2021. [Photo: AP]

In a tweet Sunday, Biden said, "Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, we are determined to help India in its time of need."

The president didn't offer specifics in the brief message. But earlier Sunday the White House said the U.S. is "working around the clock" to immediately deploy to India drug treatments and rapid diagnostic COVID-19 testing kits. Also coming are ventilators and personal protective equipment, and the U.S. will seek to provide oxygen supplies as well.

The White House says it has identified sources of raw material urgently needed for India’s manufacture of the Covishield vaccine and will make that available. The U.S. also intends to pay for an expansion of manufacturing capability for the vaccine manufacturer in India, BioE, so it can ramp up and produce at least 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines by the end of 2022.