Italian Defence Minister Lorenzo Guerini has asked US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper for essential medical equipment, such as face masks and ventilators, CNN reported on Sunday. Moreover, Rome has asked Washington to provide medical personnel and field hospitals, the broadcaster continued.
Meanwhile, the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) has already started delivering medical equipment to Italy, according to the US embassy in Italy.
"In response to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, an 86th Airlift Wing C-130J Super Hercules out of Ramstein Air Base, Germany, transported an En-Route Patient Staging System (ERPSS) to Aviano AB [Air Base], Italy, for delivery to the Italian Ministry of Defence. This mobile, or fixed system, provides 10 patient holding/staging beds and can support a maximum throughput of 40 patients in a 24-hours period", the embassy said in a press release on Sunday.
Russia is also assisting Italy amid the health crisis — nine Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft have delivered equipment and around 100 military experts to Italy to help it combat the coronavirus.
Italy is suffering from COVID-19 more than any other European country, with almost 60,000 cases and over 5,400 coronavirus-related deaths.
