Coronavirus: UN wants to ease sanctions on countries like Iran

In Geneva, Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, asked Tuesday that international sanctions on Iran, but also Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea, be "relaxed or suspended" . REUTERS / Denis Balibouse

Text by: RFI Follow

Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela and Zimbabwe are all countries ostracized from the international community and targeted by economic sanctions. Except that in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, their impact, already very heavy, could be explosive. The UN calls on states to ease sanctions to allow affected countries to fight the virus.

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From our correspondent in Geneva , Jérémie Lanche

Among the states most affected by Covid-19 is Iran . The virus has already killed more than 1,800 people there. It is hardly less than for the whole of Europe. Sanction mechanisms, in principle, spare the medical sector. Except that in reality, Tehran cannot buy respirators and protective masks.

“ The derogation systems are ineffective, are very slow too. Iran, to speak of a country that is currently in crisis at the level of Covid-19, is sorely lacking in any equipment. Iranian doctors and healthcare workers protect not only Iranians but also neighboring countries, and all of us , ”said Ruth Marshall, from the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The United States, through the voice of Donald Trump, has nevertheless declared that it is ready to help Tehran against the Covid-19. Outstretched hand sharply refused by Ayatollah Khamenei. Iran still received aid from countries like Germany, China, and France. But nothing seems simple. According to the weekly Le Point, an MSF team arriving in Iran finally had to pack up after a flip-flop from the authorities, who said they did not need help. And this while a doctor of the WHO estimates that the number of contaminations in Iran could be 5 times higher than the official figures.

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  • Iran
  • North Korea
  • Cuba
  • UN
  • Coronavirus

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