Hike in Vaccine Imports Soothing Concerns about Pandemic in Iran: President
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said a noticeable increase in the imports of the coronavirus vaccine and the higher rates of inoculation across the country have alleviated concerns in the course of the battle against the pandemic.
In an address to a Saturday meeting of the Coronavirus Fight National Headquarters, Raisi described the import of a total of nearly 50 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine as a major step in the fight against the pandemic in Iran.
While an increase in the vaccine imports and a rise in the number of daily vaccinations have greatly alleviated concerns about the contagious disease in Iran, there is hope that the number of doses administered per day would surpass 2 million very soon, the president added.
He also noted that the organizations in charge have accelerated efforts to grant permission for the distribution and emergency use of the homegrown vaccines, although carefulness has not been sacrificed for speed.
In a televised speech on August 11, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei referred to the unreliability of Western governments regarding the sale of coronavirus vaccines to Iran, saying, “The administration and the Ministry of Health had purchased vaccines from certain places and certain countries and through the COVAX. They even paid for it, but the Western sides broke their promises. However, after the arrival of our own vaccine into the market and after the people began to use them, the importation issue improved as well. In other words, the path was cleared.”
The Leader also stressed the need for intensified efforts for both the importation of vaccines and for their domestic manufacture, adding, “They should provide the people with the vaccine in whatever way possible. Millions of vaccines should become available.”
