Statement by

H.E. Mr. Majid Takht Ravanchi

Ambassador and Permanent Representative

of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations

On “Ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines

in contexts affected by conflict and insecurity”

Before the United Nations Security Council

New York, 17 February 2021

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.

Mr. President,

The COVID-19 pandemic has infected and killed millions of people and severely impacted our socioeconomic situations. Yet, it is still unfolding and has remained out of control.

It is a test of our ability in confronting serious global challenges, in which we have unfortunately not been fully successful up to now.

It is now clear that, in our highly interdependent world, many of the cross-border challenges cannot be addressed effectively by States alone and therefore international cooperation is a must.

The COVID-19 pandemic is not the first Public Health Emergency of International Concern and will not be the last. However, our success in containing this and future pandemics is dependent on the level of our preparedness, cooperation, unity and solidarity.

While there is hope that the COVID-19 vaccines will help to overcome the pandemic, we must therefore focus on mass production and fair distribution of vaccines.

The latter is more important, as it has now become crystal clear that no one will be safe until everybody is safe. Therefore, fair distribution of vaccines is beyond merely an ethical requirement. It is in the self-interest of all States.

The speed and scale of the spread of the virus, particularly its new variants that are more transmissible, have made it clear that we will succeed in reducing the scale and duration of the pandemic and averting its heavy socioeconomic costs only when we can ensure enough supply and fair distribution of vaccines to all nations and citizens.

It is however unfortunate that while developed States have vaccinated millions of their citizens, many developing countries, affected by the pandemic, have not received even a handful of vaccines.

This is alarming. The virus continues to infect us regardless of our nationality, ethnicity or faith. Therefore, in our shared battle against our common enemy, COVID-19, we must stand united and no nation must be left behind.

Moreover, while protecting the lives of our citizens in the face of the pandemic is imperative, it is equally important to recover our economies and bring back other activities to normalcy.

To that end, further measures must be taken, the most important of which -- as the UN Secretary-General and many other international dignitaries have also called for -- is the immediate removal of unilateral sanctions that are unfortunately being applied against certain countries.

In countries like Iran, sanctions have seriously inhibited our capacities in suppressing transmission of the virus and treating those infected as well as addressing the socioeconomic impacts of the pandemic.

For example, the continuation of the freezing of Iran’s financial assets abroad has prevented us from using such funds to prepare, in an effective manner, stimulus packages to help recover the private sector affected by the COVID-19 lockdowns.

Removal of sanctions against Syria is also imperative for the same reason and more importantly for preventing terrorist networks from exploiting the socioeconomic hardships caused by the pandemic to radicalize the society, recruit new members and intensify their brutal activities.

Likewise, the international community must not allow the risks of COVID-19 to exacerbate the already dire humanitarian situations in Gaza and Yemen that, for many years, have seriously suffered from all-out inhumane blockades.

It is also likely that if the COVID-19 pandemic is not curbed and its socioeconomic impacts are not addressed properly, particularly in certain African countries, the existing conflicts will continue, providing the ground also for the spread of terrorism.

All in all, to prevent even more serious consequences of the pandemic, including reversing our progress against poverty and exacerbating already high levels of inequality within and among countries, we have no choice but to succeed in containing the virus.

This can be achieved only through boosting international cooperation, solidarity in action, ensuring adequate supply and fair distribution of vaccine to all peoples and removing all impediments such as unilateral sanctions and blockades that undermine the capacities of certain nations in suppressing the virus.

I thank you, Mr. President.