Coronavirus response: NATO and Latvia support to North Macedonia
On 18 March 2021, North Macedonia received 6,000 litres of surface disinfectant detergent from NATO’s Pandemic Response Stockpile. The donation was coordinated by NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) and the Republic of Latvia to respond to North Macedonia’s request for international assistance for COVID-19.
The surface disinfectant will be distributed to 17 hospitals around the country, examples include the General Hospitals of Gevgelija, Strumica, Gostivar, Ohrid, Bitola and the Institute for children diseases. The surface disinfectant detergent was produced by a Latvian company. Provision of the aid and the transportation to North Macedonia was funded by Latvia as part of their in-kind contribution to the NATO Pandemic Response Trust Fund.
As part of the NATO COVID-19 assistance packages in support to Allies and partners, North Macedonia has already received 60 ventilators and 60 sets of ventilator equipment that were previously distributed from the NATO Pandemic Response Stockpile and four pulmonary ventilators as a donation of Slovakia to the NATO Pandemic Response Stockpile. Following the delivery of 6,000 litres of surface disinfectant detergent, further medical equipment is expected to arrive in the coming weeks.
This support is part of the 12 COVID-19 assistance packages NATO has approved for Allies and partners. Eighteen Allies have made financial and in-kind donations of medical equipment and supplies to the NATO Pandemic Response Trust Fund. The Trust Fund manages a stockpile of medical equipment and supplies from in-kind donations or targeted purchases to provide immediate relief to Allies or partners in need. As NATO’s civil emergency response mechanism, the EADRCC continues to coordinate bilateral in-kind donations through its clearing house mechanism and the NATO Pandemic Response Trust Fund.