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Coronavirus: Chinese consul general in New York thanks NBA for its donation to help fight outbreak
- Gesture by Huang Ping comes a day after Beijing blames Washington for spreading fears about the contagion and doing ‘nothing to help’
- Official says other multinational companies have also donated cash and goods to the Chinese Red Cross and Hubei province
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Chinese consul general Huang Ping expressed gratitude to the United States, and especially the NBA, for providing support for China’s efforts to combat the coronavirus outbreak that is spreading around the globe.
“While China is bravely fighting the virus, people from United States and all over the world are offering massive support in preventing and controlling this outbreak,” he said at a media briefing at the consulate in New York.
The National Basketball Association is providing donations worth US$1.4 million to Hubei province, where the contagion originated, including a medical device worth US$285,000 for use at Wuhan Fourth Hospital.
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Huang said that multinational companies including Microsoft, Dell, Boeing and L’Oreal had donated an additional US$1.4 million in cash and goods to the Chinese Red Cross and Hubei.
His comments came just months after the biggest rift between NBA and China since the basketball league established ties – and billion-dollar deals – in China. In October, Daryl Morey, general manager of the Houston Rockets, sparked outrage among NBA fans in mainland China after he voiced support on Twitter for the pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, leading Beijing to cancel the telecasts of two preseason games being played in the country.
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