Coronavirus: Maldives' President Solih thanks India for evacuating 7 Maldivians from Wuhan

President of Maldives Ibrahim Mohamed Solih expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for evacuating seven Maldivians from the epicentre of Coronavirus outbreak — the Chinese city of Wuhan. Following the return of 323 Indian nationals and 7 Maldives nationals from Wuhan to Delhi on the second Air India flight on February 2, Solih took to Twitter and described the gesture as a "fine example of the outstanding friendship" between the two countries.  

Furthermore, the Maldivian President also thanked the Chinese government along with China's ambassador to the Maldives, Zhang Lizhong for their 'support and assistance' amid the deadly outbreak. Coronavirus has already claimed more than 300 lives with nearly 14,000 confirmed cases in China. 

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Maldivian FM thanks India

Earlier, Maldivian Foreign Minister  Abdulla Shahid had also thanked India and its leadership for evacuating Maldivians. Shahid not only expressed his gratitude to PM Modi and the MEA but also appreciated the efforts of India's envoy to China Vikram Misri and to the Maldives Sunjay Sudhir.  He also thanked Chinese authorities for their assistance. 

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As per the statement of the Health Ministry, travel advisories have been sent to adjoining countries including China to spread information about the disease globally. The screening of passengers with travel history from China which was earlier being carried out only on seven airports has been extended to 13 more, taking the total to 20. According to the press release by the government, the authorities have been using thermal scanners for faster screening. 

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