Pres. Rouhani urges IMF to decide independently on Iran's loan

AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said that under these difficult circumstances, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) must fulfill its duty without being affected by mischievous acts of the Iranian nation's enemies.

He made the remarks during a phone conversation with Central Bank of Iran (CBI) Governor Abdolnasser Hemmati late on Thursday when he received a report on the process of Iran's application for a loan from IMF.

Rejecting discrimination against Iran and any other country, Rouhani said that they should abide by their international commitments.

Hemmati, for his part, said, "While the request is to be examined by the IMF's executive board we are also pursuing it seriously."

He further noted that efforts are underway to pursue using CBI's resources in foreign banks and other sources available to meet public needs, especially when they are grappling with coronavirus.

Hemmati also briefed the president on Iran's legal success on lifting ban on Central Bank's resources to the tune of 1.6 billion dollars at Clear Stream in Luxembourg.

In relevant remarks last week, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani said that US sabotage of Iran's $5 billion loan bid from the International Monetary Fund to fight the coronavirus amounts to "crime against humanity".

"Sanctioning medical items is an illegal act, an anti-human rights move, and [US President Donald] Trump’s open animosity with Iranian people” Shamkhani wrote in his tweet, “US’ opposing IMF’s granting a loan to Iran to provide the necessary equipment to fight the coronavirus outbreak is real instance of crimes against humanity.”

On March 12, Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif wrote in a tweet that the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva had “stated that countries affected by COVID19 will be supported via Rapid Financial Instrument. Our Central Bank requested access to this facility immediately.”

Iranian health ministry announced on Thursday that 1,634 new cases of infection with coronavirus have been identified in the country, adding that the virus has killed a total number of 4,110 patients so far.

“1,634 more patients infected with COVID-19 virus have been identified in the country since yesterday based on confirmed diagnosis criteria,” Health Ministry Spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said on Thursday.

He added that the number of coronavirus patients in Iran has increased to 66,220, adding that 4,110 people have lost their lives due to infection to the virus, including 117 in the past 24 hours.

Jahanpour, meantime, said that the recovery of patients has accelerated in Iran and 32,309 infected people have been treated and dismissed from hospital.

He noted that 231,393 coronavirus diagnosis tests have been carried out in the country so far, adding that 3,918 patients infected with COVID-19 virus are in critical conditions.

The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting approximately all countries and territories around the world. The virus was first reported in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year. It has so far killed more than 88,900 people and infected over 1.52 million others globally.

The Iranian foreign ministry declared that despite Washington’s claims of cooperation to transfer drugs to Iran via the new Swiss-launched payment mechanism, the US is troubling the process amid the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

Although US claims that medicines and medical equipment are not under sanctions, they have practically blocked the transfer of Iran’s financial resources in other countries into the Swiss Humanitarian Trade Arrangement (SHTA), Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Mousavi said.

As the death toll from the virus surges, Iran intensifies its preventive safety measures. Closures of schools and most universities have been extended until late April.

The government also imposed travel restrictions, specially on Iran’s North, which is among the red zones. The country has also adopted strict digital health control procedures at airports to spot possible infections.

Iranian Health Minister Saeed Namaki announced last month that a new national mobilization plan would be implemented across the country to fight against the coronavirus epidemic and more effectively treat patients.

Namaki said that the plan will include all the 17,000 health centers and the 9,000 medical and clinical centers in all cities, suburban areas and villages.

He added that the plan will include home quarantine, noting that infected people will receive the necessary medicines and advice, but they are asked to stay at home.

Namaki said that people with a more serious condition will stay at the hospitals, adding that the public places will be disinfected, the entries of infected towns and cities will be controlled to diagnose and quarantine the infected cases.

He added that the necessary equipment and facilities have been provided, expressing the hope that the epidemic would be curbed.

According to the latest statistics of Health Ministry, the number of medical laboratories to test coronavirus infection has reached over 90 across the country.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says Iran's response to the virus has so far been up to the mark. Still, it says the US sanctions are a big challenge, and Washington would be complicit in the rising death toll in Iran if it would not remove its sanctions.

The World Health Organization has considered priorities in combating coronavirus and Islamic Republic of Iran obeys and follows up priorities as defined by WHO.

The WHO is dispatching separate delegations to all countries.

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