The US has agreed to unblock Iran’s assets so that the country can purchase vaccines against coronavirus. This was told by the Governor of the Central Bank of Iran Abdulnasser Hemmati, quoted by Reuters .
“The Americans themselves imposed sanctions on all of our banks. They made this exception simply because they felt pressure from the international community,” Hemmati said.
In fact, Washington just allowed Tehran to fight the spread of COVID-19. The Central Bank of Iran allegedly received permission from the Office of Foreign Assets Control US Treasury transferring money to a Swiss bank. Thus, Tehran can pay for vaccine supplies.
Iran is now going to pay about $ 244 million to import the first 16.8 million doses of the vaccine. Iranian company Shifa Pharmed is also starting trials of its own drug. This coincidence is likely related to a brewing dispute among the Iranian authorities. Some of them consider it permissible to purchase foreign vaccines, but another part – mainly among members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – is afraid to use other people’s drugs.