US says ‘rich nations’ like India, China must pitch in during crises like Myanmar earthquake

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday (April 5) said that India and China were ‘rich countries’ and they should step up aid to quake-hit Myanmar.

Rubio added that while the US was not running away from its responsibility of providing humanitarian assistance, he expected other nations to pitch in.

“Well, we’re not the government of the world. No, we will provide humanitarian assistance just like everybody else does and do it the best we can. But we also have other needs we have to balance that against. We’re not walking away from humanitarian assistance,” Rubio said while speaking to reporters at Nato headquarters.

The US official was asked whether the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has had any affect on the country’s ability to provide assistance during such crises.

“Other countries need to do so as well. China is a very rich country, and India is a rich country. There are a lot of other countries in the world and everyone should pitch in. I don’t think it’s fair to assume the United States needs to continue to share the burden – 60 to 70 per cent – of humanitarian aid around the world. We will be in the business of humanitarian aid but have other priorities as well that are in the national interest of the United States, and we’re going to align all those to be properly balanced,” Rubio said.

He further said how Myanmar’s military junta “doesn’t like us and doesn’t necessarily allow us to operate in that country the way we want to”.

Just hours after the powerful earthquake hit Myanmar on March 28, India stepped in as one of the first responders, launching Operation Brahma to provide urgent help.

The first batch of relief arrived swiftly via the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) — 15 tonnes of essential supplies like tents, blankets, medicines, and food were flown in using a C-130J aircraft, which landed in Yangon early on March 29.

Soon after, two more IAF C-130J aircraft delivered the second tranche. These carried:

80 NDRF specialists trained in search and rescue

17 tonnes of gear, including personal protective equipment, communication tools, and rescue kits

5 tonnes of relief materials such as generators, hygiene kits, ready-to-eat food, medicines, cooking sets, and blankets