The Vietnam-Russia Friendship Parliamentarians Group (VRFPG) and a group of Vietnamese alumni who had studied in Russia and are now working at the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources on April 29 handed over medical supplies and cash worth over VND1 billion (US$42,600) to the Russian Embassy in Vietnam to help the Russian people in the fight against COVID-19.

At the hand-over ceremony (Photo: VNA)

Speaking at the hand-over ceremony, Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee for Science, Technology and Environment Phan Xuan Dung, who is also head of the VRFPG, said the Vietnamese people, including many Vietnamese alumni who had studied in Russia, have eagerly responded to the campaign calling for support to the Russian people to overcome the difficult time.

The gift is consider as a thank from the Vietnamese people in general and Vietnamese alumni in particular to Russia and its people, and shows Vietnam’s solidarity with the country, he stressed.

Dung expressed his belief that Russia will be successful in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

For his part, Russian Ambassador to Vietnam Konstantin Vnukov thanked the Vietnamese people in general, the VRFPG and Vietnamese alumni in particular for their assistance, affirming that this is a valuable help for the Russian people at present.

He also praised professional and effective response measures taken by Vietnam in the fight against the epidemic, saying that those have been recognised and appreciated by the international community.

With the solidarity and unity, countries will soon push back the epidemic, the ambassador said.