Brussels has thanked China for offering to provide more than 2m medical masks and 50,000 coronavirus testing kits, as Beijing escalates its help to European countries grappling with the growing pandemic.
Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, said she spoke to Li Keqiang, China’s premier, on Wednesday and agreed with him that the two powers should “support each other in times of need”.
The Chinese move is the latest in a string of promised anti-coronavirus shipments to European countries that analysts see as having a potentially wider diplomatic impact, as Beijing seeks to exploit transatlantic tensions and forge closer relations with Europe.