Changsha, capital of Hunan province, has donated more than 100,000 face masks to European cities to help them contain COVID-19, according to the city's foreign affairs office.

The city has received letters of gratitude from more than 10 cities in different European countries, including Belarus, Germany and Spain. Those cities are or will become sister cities of Changsha.

In August, after learning medical workers in Belarus' Mogilev were in shortage of medical supplies, Changsha immediately donated 40,000 disposable surgical masks.

Mogilev sent a letter of gratitude to the city on Aug 20, saying though the two cities were 7,000 kilometers apart, the long distance cannot hinder them from developing a friendly relationship and sharing good wishes.

It thanked the city for its assistance, which, in its words, was of great significance to its medical institutions in fighting against the pandemic.

Changsha donated 40,000 face masks and 2,000 bags of disinfectant tissue to some German cities, including Berlin and Dusseldorf. It also provided medical supplies to some medical institutions in Netherlands, the UK, Ireland and Spain.

So far, the city of Changsha and companies in the city have donated 106,000 N95 and surgical masks to Italian cities, including Florence, Ferrara and Turin.