Iranian President Hasan Rouhani said the Islamic Republic’s battle against the COIVD-19 pandemic has been positive despite all the challenges created by the US against Tehran.
“We have taken promising steps in the production of the coronavirus vaccine and our specialists are sure that domestic vaccine will be available by the next [Iranian] year [starts March 21],” Rouhani said during Saturday’s session of the National Coronavirus Combat and Prevention Headquarters.
The Iranian president referred to sanctions against the Iranian nation and their impacts on the prompt response to the pandemic, saying: “There was a fundamental difference between Iran and rest of the world in the fight against coronavirus as we were under economic pressure by the former US administration while others were free for trade and financial transaction.”
He noted that the previous US administration, through “economic terrorism”, challenged the purchase of, medical equipment and prevented Iran from receiving loans, while other countries did not have such problems.
Rouhani added that the sanctions have also restricted the Iranian researchers’ access to the much-needed data. However, the Iranian scientists “have managed to propel their plans significantly and the domestic vaccines will hopefully be available to people in the coming months.”
Meanwhile, he noted that he fact that Iran is outperforming the US and Europe in tackling the coronavirus pandemic should not make the country self-satisfied, warning that a failure to observe health protocols will result in dangerous and difficult conditions.
The Iranian president urged general public to continue adherence to the protocols till the pandemic is fully contained.
Rouhani said efforts are under way to prevent a fourth wave of the pandemic in the last two months of the (Iranian) year to allow the tourism and service sectors get back on their feet and make up for the losses in the new year holidays.
Source: Mehr and Tasnim news agencies
