Saarc leaders to form common strategy to fight coronavirus
Saarc leaders will hold a videoconference on Sunday to chalk out a strong common strategy to fight the COVID-19 in the region.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the conference, tweeted the Indian Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar today.
"Coming together for the common good!" he said, a day after some leaders of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) showed their approval for Modi's proposal on containing the novel coronavirus.
On Friday, Modi proposed that the leadership of Saarc nations chalk out a strong strategy to fight coronavirus.
"We could discuss, via video conferencing, ways to keep our citizens healthy…together, we can set an example to the world, and contribute to a healthier planet," Modi tweeted in a message heralding a new era of Saarc, which has almost been non-functional mainly because of the tensions between India and Pakistan.
All the South Asian leaders, except for Afghanistan and Pakistan, thanked Modi for the proposal.
Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina welcomes the proposal and looks forward to a constructive dialogue with the Saarc leaders.
Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih thanked Modi for taking the initiative.
"COVID-19 requires collective effort to defeat it. Maldives welcomes this proposal and would fully support such a regional effort."
Thanking the Indian PM, his Nepali counterpart KP Sharma Oli said his government is ready to work closely with Saarc member states to protect the people of the region from this deadly disease.
Bhutanese PM Lotay Tshering said, "This is what we call leadership. As members of this region, we must come together in such times."
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