IRAN’S VACCINE DISTRIBUTION: A PROMISE OF SELF-SUFFICIENCY THREATENS THE LIVELIHOOD OF IRANIAN CITIZENS
BY IDA GHOHESTANI
With 2,006,934 confirmed cases and 63,884 state-reported deaths as of April 8 (actual cases and deaths are speculated to be significantly higher), Iran is one of the hardest hit countries by the coronavirus pandemic. While many Western countries have seen a downtick of cases with the creation of the Pfizer, Moderna, and J&J vaccines, cases in Iran have continued to steadily rise as a result of government mismanagement in mitigating the spread, as well as vaccine rollouts.
Effectively holding the Iranian people hostage in the war against the West, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has banned imports of British and American vaccines, opting for vaccines imported from Russia, China, India, and Cuba, a move that many have seen to be a signal to Western countries, namely the United States and the United Kingdom, that the Iranian government is capable of taking care of their own people. This move, however, has come at the expense of Iranian citizens. Currently, less than 1 percent of the Iranian population have been vaccinated, and the government has fallen behind on their promise to vaccinate 1.3 million people by March 20.
The country has also seen progress in the development of three of their own vaccines, one of which being Fakhra, named after scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who was assassinated in early November, as well as CoV Iran Barkat, which was launched into its second and third phase of human trials on March 15. Iranian leaders have been outspoken about their self-sufficiency in the development and acquiring of vaccines for the Iranian population, with Foreign Prime Minister Javad Zarif saying on March 15, “Just as we were forced to manufacture missiles ourselves, we produced a coronavirus vaccine.”
The regime continues to blame the United States for the severity of the pandemic within Iran, saying that the situation is in large part due to maximum pressure sanctions imposed by the previous administration and maintained by the current Biden administration. Zarif has resorted to using soft-power tactics to shame the United States and shed light on impacts of maximum pressure sanctions, having been quoted saying, “Can those who prevented the transfer of our money for purchasing vaccines say that they learned a lesson in humanity and humility from the coronavirus outbreak?”
The Iranian regime must set aside, at least for the moment, their animosity toward Western countries to acquire large doses of vaccines such as Pfizer to protect the Iranian people.
However, he fails to mention the Ayatollah’s ban on Western vaccines, illustrating the heightened dishonesty propagated by the regime and a tactic of victimization meant to absolve any responsibility from those in power.
The Iranian people have become pawns in the Supreme Leader’s chess game, and their wellbeing has come second to attempting to prove to the international community that Iran will be able to help its citizens without the assistance of the West. The Ayatollah, along with President Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, have shown that they value nationalistic pride and the prospect of “self-sufficiency” above the well-being of the Iranian people.
The United States, in maintaining the policy of maximum pressure sanctions, has only helped to worsen the plight for innocent Iranian civilians. It is clear that the regime must set aside, at least for the moment, their animosity toward the United States, along with Western countries like the UK and France, to acquire large doses of vaccines such as Pfizer to protect the Iranian people. Not only would this mitigate the threat of infection and further spread of the disease within the country, but it would also help in a worldwide effort to put an end to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the regime has shown no indication that it will do so, and therefore it must be up to the United States to lift maximum pressure sanctions as a gesture of goodwill to the Iranian people.
This might bring the Iranian government back to the negotiation table and display the effectiveness of science diplomacy in protecting not just innocent Iranian citizens caught in the crossfire of a decades-long fight, but also in enhancing the safety and security of everyone in the world who is threatened by the pandemic.
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Ida Ghohestani is a sophomore at the University of Southern California majoring in International Relations and French. Her research interests include terrorism/counterterrrorism, civil wars and conflict in the Middle East, and U.S.-Iran relations. She is participating in a foreign affairs reporting class taught by Professor Phil Seib, a collaboration between the Pacific Council and the Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Pacific Council.
