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Uzbekistan
14/05/2008
SCO secretary general presents condolences over quake in China
"The SCO Secretariat presents profound condolences to families of the quake victims," says the message acquired by the Itar-Tass Beijing office.
"In this period hard for China, SCO peoples confirm their solidarity with the people of China."
The SCO is made up of Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. India, Pakistan, Iran and Mongolia are observers. The Secretariat is based in Beijing.
China has thanked all countries, including Russia, for their support.
"We are grateful to all the states and international organizations and welcome their readiness to help," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said. "China is ready to establish related contacts with international organizations and states."
The quake death toll has exceeded 12,000, but the final casualties may be even larger as rescuers keep finding dead bodies under house debris.
A plane of the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry will fly to China on Tuesday to deliver humanitarian aid to quake-stricken areas, a ministry source told Itar-Tass.
"An Ilyushin Il-76 cargo plane will head for China tonight. It will deliver tents and blankets for Chinese citizens in the quake zone. The total weight of the cargo is 30 tonnes," the source said.
The aid will be supplied to the city of Chengdu.
The ministry said earlier that it was ready to send a mobile hospital and a team of Centrospas rescuers to China for assisting the quake cleanup.
President Dmitry Medvedev sent a cable to Chinese President Hu Jintao on Monday to present his condolences over the large loss of life in the Sichuan province and to offer Russian assistance.
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