At a COVID-19 update press conference on May 14, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced that a large shipment of personal protective equipment (PPE) has been transported to Massachusetts since April 20 through this past weekend by six chartered flights from China, which includes over 6 million surgical and procedural masks, about 800,000 swabs, nearly 400,000 coveralls and over 125,000 gowns. Gov. Baker expressed gratitude to Consul General Amb. Huang Ping and other partners for making this happen.

In recent months,the Chinese Consulate General in New York has been in close touch with Massachusetts State Government to facilitate the PPE shipment from China. To ensure the urgently needed equipment be delivered to Massachusetts as soon as possible, the Chinese Consulate General, together with relevant authorities in China, have devoted great efforts and overcome many difficulties to secure the delivery.

As Governor Baker mentioned at the press conference, from April 20 to May 9, the Chinese Consulate General coordinated with relevant Chinese authorities to facilitate the customs clearance and transportation of the six chartered flights fully loaded with PPE from China. Governor Baker called the shipments "a big win for Massachusetts and the folks working in frontline who need the very important equipment."

Previously on April 2, the Consulate promoted the establishment of a green channel for a chartered flight by the Kraft Group to transport around 1 million masks from Shenzhen to Boston. We also opened the Consulate over the weekend to get visas for the crews processed in time. At that time of severe masks shortage, the vast amount of equipment played key role to save lives and curb pandemic in Massachusetts.

The Chinese Consulate General in New York values the long-term cooperation and friendship with Massachusetts, which has undoubtedly been further strengthened during our joint fight against COVID-19. We appreciate the leadership of Governor Baker and the efforts by Massachusetts medical workers and every one to fight the pandemic. We will continue to stand with Massachusetts and offer assistance as our ability permits.

Up to May 15, China has donated about 10,575,900 masks, 311,500 surgical and disposable gloves, 133,700 goggles, 157,300 protective suits, 84,000 surgical caps, 1000 ventilators and 500,000 test kits to the US. According to incomplete statistics, China has provided the US with over 9.83 billion masks, meaning almost 30 masks for each in the US, plus 8868 ventilators, 368 million gloves, 53.3 million protective suits and 8.75 million goggles.