Iran can take back paid membership fee to IMF: MP

Mohammad Hosseini Member of Parliament Plan and Budget Commission said that the US opposition to Iran’s access to financial resources to combat the novel coronavirus is a clear example of ‘medical terrorism’ and this issue has questioned the efficiency of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

He warned IMF that if it fails to live up to its commitments toward Iran as one of the founding members of the Fund, the country can take back its membership fee as paid during these years.

He described the US move as ‘medical terrorism, which has disrupted the process of presenting healthcare services in battling coronavirus and has jeopardized the health and lives of scores of people.

The US sabotage in preventing IMF to pay loan to Iran comes at a time that many countries have faced serious challenges in addressing health and economic consequences of the outbreak of coronavirus and have earmarked huge financial resources for this issue, he said, adding, “even, these countries have requested loans from IMF to combat the disease.”

In the meantime, the Islamic Republic of Iran, in addition to combating coronavirus, has been under the US sanctions and this issue has become more challenging for Iran in the fight against the deadly virus, he criticized.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he pointed to the duty of the Fund and said, “assisting its members financially in critical conditions is the main task of the Fund and since the Islamic Republic of Iran is one of the founding members of the Fund, it has paid its membership fee to the Fund in previous years. Under such circumstances, Iran has reserved the right to request for loans if needed in emergency situations.”

In an Instagram post in mid-March, 2020, CBI governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said he had written to the IMF’s head, Kristalina Georgieva, to stress Iran’s “right to benefit from the fund’s $50-billion Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI),” to help it cope with the coronavirus pandemic.

The request, however, was opposed by the US.

Iran is one of the countries most affected by the pandemic and the US sanctions are hampering the country’s efforts to contain the virus.

MNA/IRN83749991