The Pentagon has been directed by the United States Defense Secretary to provide material assistance to India.

US Defense Secretary Austin Lloyd has directed the Pentagon to provide all necessary assistance to Indian healthcare workers fighting the country’s rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak.

The move comes after US Vice President Kamala Harris and US President Joe Biden called for the mobilisation of American resources to help India deal with the unprecedented health crisis that has erupted in the aftermath of the deadly second wave of the coronavirus.

Our Indian partners are supported by the men and women of the Department of Defense in their time of need. Austin said in a statement on Sunday, “We are in this fight together.” Last month, Austin made his first trip to India as a high-ranking Biden administration official.

Austin stated that he has directed the department to use all available resources to support US interagency efforts to get the materials India’s frontline healthcare workers need as soon as possible. In the coming days and weeks, we’ll assess the equipment we can both buy and borrow from our own inventory.

We will provide transportation and logistics support in the coming days to deliver needed supplies to India, including oxygen-related equipment, rapid testing kits, and personal protective equipment, according to Austin.

We’ll keep working with other US agencies and departments, as well as industry, to help our Indian partners fight the outbreak, he said.