Tehran 27 March_The chief commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says the Islamic Republic has enough healthcare capacities to help American people fight the outbreak of the new coronavirus, COVID-19, but does not need any assistance from the US administration.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club(YJC)_Major General Hossein Salami made the remarks on the sidelines of Iran's biological defense drills on Thursday while reacting to claims by various American officials, including US President Donald Trump and his secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, to the effect that Washington is ready to help Tehran contain the virus pandemic.
“When Americans say they want to help the Iranian nation under these conditions, it is nothing but demagogy,” the IRGC chief commander said.
General Salami added, “They are themselves plagued by this virus outbreak and their healthcare infrastructure cannot protect the American people against this phenomenon. If the American nation needs help, we can render assistance to them, but we do not need their help.”
President Trump and Pompeo have, on several occasions, extended a self-proclaimed helping hand towards Iran, with the top American diplomat accusing the Iranian medical system of suffering from weakness in the battle against the new virus.
Pompeo told the Sean Hannity Show radio program on March 18 that the US was “working diligently to create better conditions” for Iranians, and “make sure that we’re available to provide humanitarian assistance when we can.”
Iran has roundly denounced the claims as hypocritical, saying if the US genuinely sought to help it out, it should lift its sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic.