The Indian government has decided to provide Ukraine with a batch of 30,000 pills of hydroxychloroquine, which is considered by experts as a promising medication for fight against coronavirus (COVID-19), on a non-repayable basis, the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine said.

"I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Indian government for its assistance. Even despite a ban on exports of hydroxychloroquine abroad our Indian friends have made this important to Ukraine decision," the ministry's press service quoted Foreign Minister of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba as saying on Wednesday.

Kuleba met with Ambassador of India to Ukraine Partha Satpathy at the beginning of April.

The Health Ministry will receive the pharmaceutical drug in order to distribute it among hospitals.

The Foreign Ministry recalled that the Health Ministry has included hydroxychloroquine to the protocol of treatment for COVID-19 patients.

The Health Ministry, in turn, warned that the medication should not be used for self-treatment and can be prescribed only by a doctor. Effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine for treatment of COVID-19 patients is being carefully studied in many countries, including the United States and the EU.