Russia to Send Four Planeloads of Humanitarian Aid to China

Chinese rescuers in the Sichuan earthquake zone

Russia was one of the first countries to come to the rescue in the aftermath of a destructive earthquake in southwest China. Moscow built an air bridge to deliver humanitarian aid to the disaster area in China a mere 24 hours after the Sichuan province was first hit. The province continues to suffer from a series of aftershocks. Yuri Brazhnikov, the Director of the International Activities Department of the Ministry for Emergency Situations, commented on immediate plans for Russian assistance to China. He said, “The top priority is sending vital humanitarian aid to those who have lost their homes and need help. Secondly, we are prepared to send a search-and-rescue team and a mobile hospital to China. Four Ilyushin-76 cargo planes are scheduled to take the aid in question to China”.

The first Russian plane flew in 30 tonnes of humanitarian cargo, namely tents, blankets, and food. The elements levelled many thousands of homes, the area is currently suffering torrential rain, and seismologists do not rule out more underground tremors. The plight of the hundreds of thousands of survivors is made critical by gale-force winds and low night temperatures. The quake hit the area during the daytime on Monday, when children were at school. The lack of machinery and relevant equipment makes it impossible for rescuers to clean up school building wreckage. But, the rescuers, doctors, and fire-fighters just cannot reach most of the quake-affected areas because roads and bridges have been destroyed. Mudflows and landslides are highly probable because of torrential rain.

Russian rescuers and medical workers have much experience in providing assistance for people in this kind of emergency situation. They provided assistance in the aftermath of the tsunami several years ago in South-East and South Asia, and also helped those trapped in devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Pakistan. Today, Russia is prepared to send to China teams of rescue workers, supply the machinery required, and set up a mobile hospital in the disaster-stricken area. Many regions in Siberia and the Russian Far East that cooperate with China in other matters bent every effort to send mobile search-and-rescue teams, groups of medical workers, and other experts to the quake-hit area in China once all formalities are agreed.

Japan, Thailand, Australia, the United States, and several international organisations have, along with Russia, signalled their wish to channel aid to China. The natural disaster in China came in the wake of the devastating typhoon in Myanmar. The destructive natural calamities of recent days makes it imperative for Asian and Pacific countries to think out and set up effective international cooperation mechanisms to cope with the aftermath of natural disasters. The process could be started at the forthcoming G-8 leaders’ meeting with the Heads of State of the leading developing nations.

14 May 2008

Voice of Russia World Service

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