Chinese company donates 1.1 mln face masks to 12 U.S. states

Chinese Consul General in Chicago Zhao Jian (R) and Wanxiang America Corporation President Ni Pin (C) have a video chat with former Missouri Governor Bob Holden at Wanxiang America's headquarters in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, the United States, on May 4, 2020. Wanxiang Group, a Chinese multinational automotive components manufacturing company headquartered in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, is donating 1.1 million face masks and 50,000 protective masks to 12 U.S. states, with the first batch of thousands of boxes shipped on Monday. (Xinhua)

CHICAGO, May 5 (Xinhua) -- Wanxiang Group, a Chinese multinational automotive components manufacturing company headquartered in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, is donating 1.1 million face masks and 50,000 protective masks to 12 U.S. states, with the first batch of thousands of boxes shipped on Monday.

A label on each box reads, "Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off." The 12 states are Illinois, Michigan, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, Tennessee, Delaware, Mississippi, Colorado, South Dakota and Louisiana.

Before the shipment, former Missouri Governor Bob Holden expressed thanks from his residence in Missouri through a video chat to Chinese Consul General in Chicago Zhao Jian and Wanxiang America Corporation President Ni Pin, who were in Wanxiang America's headquarters in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, overseeing the shipment.

"You've made a lot of people very, very happy and feeling much more safe and secure. And that's what I think is cool about building bridges between your culture and our culture for the benefit of both cultures," Holden said to Ni.

Holden thanked Zhao, saying, "It's very, very important that we find common ground and work together because our two countries both have great histories, can have even a greater future by working together as partners and building those relationships to benefit humanity on both sides."

"Our work together will mean we can be successful together. That is what gives me hope that as we go through the difficult times that we're in today, we will have a brighter future together," he added.

Zhao thanked Holden for serving as a very important bridge between the Chinese people and the Midwest in the United States. "It's a very challenging time, but it's good to see that all relevant partners are working together and acting together, unified against the virus."

"The virus is the common enemy of the whole humanity and no one can deal with it by itself. So we think we need to work together and fight against the virus together," he noted.

Zhao recalled the support and assistance China received earlier this year from American companies and people when China was in the most difficult times of the fight against the virus. "We believe that with the concerted efforts, the people here in the Midwest of the United States will be able to control the spread of the virus."

"We also believe that for China and the United States, the two very important countries, the two biggest economies in the world, we should play a leading role in working together, in helping the world fight against the virus. There are really a lot of things that we need to do together and we can do together," Zhao said.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee sent Ni a thank-you letter. "On behalf of the citizens of Tennessee, I wanted to thank you for your donation of 40,000 disposable masks given through the U.S. China Heartland Association. These masks will help our brave frontline personnel combat the immediate and lasting effects of this terrible virus," it read.

In another thank-you letter, Indiana Secretary of Commerce James Schellinger expressed gratitude for Wanxiang's donation of 100,000 masks to the state of Indiana "during this difficult and uncertain time." "This donation is critical in advancing our state's preparedness and will help protect thousands of lives throughout our communities."

"In a world that is more connected now than ever before, the opportunities and challenges we face are shared. We remain committed partners and we look forward to the opportunity to work together in the future," Schellinger wrote in the letter.

According to Ni, Wanxiang has ordered more masks from China. "There's much more we can do with the local hospitals as well," he said, adding that Wanxiang is looking forward to working with local organizations.

"We stay together, [and] we will defeat this COVID-19," he said.