"Will also help other countries in need"
[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] On the 27th (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the United States will secure 100,000 ventilators within 100 days in response to the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
On the same day, President Trump officially appointed Peter Navarro, a prominent hawkish protectionist and Director of the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, as the Defense Production Act policy coordinator with related authority.
According to local media, during a press conference of the COVID-19 response task force (TF) held after the signing ceremony of a $2.2 trillion (approximately 2,700 trillion KRW) economic stimulus package bill, President Trump said, "Within the next 100 days, we will produce or acquire an additional 100,000 ventilators," adding, "This is three times the annual production volume within the United States."
He reportedly mentioned, "It is likely that the United States will not need all 100,000 ventilators," and "We will also help other countries that need them."
President Trump's remarks came immediately after invoking the Defense Production Act, created during the Korean War, targeting General Motors (GM) in the U.S. to expand ventilator production amid the COVID-19 situation.
Meanwhile, during the briefing, President Trump announced the appointment of Director Navarro as the Defense Production Act coordinator. CNN described Navarro's new position as the "Defense Production Act czar." At the briefing, Navarro stated, "Industrial mobilization is necessary to produce enough ventilators, at least for a short period."
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