The Singapore government will ship more than 500 tonnes of oxygen to Indonesia in regular shipments from now till August, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a press release issued on Monday, July 19.

Four ISO tanks containing 80 tonnes of liquid oxygen have already arrived at Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta on July 19, with the next shipment scheduled to take place in a week's time.

The arrangement is to further support Indonesia's fight against the current Covid-19 surge, and to supplement the urgent need for oxygen in medical facilities in the country as well.

Dubbed "Oxygen Shuttle", the programme is on top of assistance the Singapore government is sending, including oxygen cylinders, oxygen concentrators, ventilators, as well as other medical supplies and equipment.

These supplies have been sent in earlier batches on July 9 and 11.

The programme is coordinated by MFA, with support from the Ministry of Defence, and the Changi Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Coordination Centre.

Singapore will do their utmost to ride out tough time with Indonesia

Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean took to Facebook on July 19 as well to talk about the shipments of oxygen supplies.

Saying that he has been "in close touch" with Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs & Investments Luhut Pandjaitan on the shipments, he added that the Singapore government will do their utmost to "ride out this tough time together with Indonesia".

Efforts and contributions from the government, as well as from non-government and private entities, attest to "the close relationship, solidarity, and strong mutual support" between the two countries in the midst of the pandemic, MFA added.

Worrying situation in Indonesia

With the spread of the relatively more transmissible Delta variant, Indonesia has reported more Covid-19 cases than any country lately, Reuters reported.

The country is facing a sharp spike in deaths among doctors as well, sparking concerns that the medical system in the country may not be able to cope with the growing outbreak.

The rise in deaths was in spite of a 95 per cent vaccination rate among health workers, prompting the government to administer Moderna vaccines as booster shots to the Sinovac vaccines that the medical professionals received.

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