在全球冠状病毒大流行期间，美国拒绝放松对伊朗的制裁，尽管包括美国前政府官员在内的国际社会出于人道主义原因呼吁放松制裁。
美国国务卿迈克·庞贝(Mike Pompeo)在周二的新闻发布会上为唐纳德·特朗普(Donald Trump)总统针对伊朗的“最大压力”运动辩护，称政府“做了出色的工作，剥夺了该政权继续开展恐怖活动所需的资源。”这位美国最高外交官希望新的伊朗政府“改变观点”
简报会是在华盛顿和德黑兰断绝关系40周年之际举行的。1979年的伊斯兰革命推翻了亲西方的君主制，导致美国驻伊朗大使馆发生了长达444天的人质危机。在美国实施旨在向伊朗施加政治压力的额外制裁后，这种不和近年来不断升级,但是批评者说，经济影响也阻碍了伊朗应对诸如冠状病毒大流行等危机的能力。
冠状病毒的爆发已经在伊朗感染了超过64，000人，杀死了近4，000人，是世界上死亡率最高的国家之一。那里的官员要求结束他们认为的制裁由于害怕被击中而被推迟通过美国的惩罚性措施
周一，24名前美国和欧洲官员也在一份由欧洲领导人网络和伊朗项目组织的声明中敦促特朗普政府采取“有针对性的制裁减免”。
“像许多美国人和欧洲人一样，伊朗人也面临着他们国家记忆中最黑暗的时期之一。声明中写道:“当全世界都在努力应对新冠状病毒引起的疾病——COVID-19时，我们必须记住，任何地方的爆发都会影响到任何地方的人们。”。“反过来，跨越国界拯救生命对我们自身的安全至关重要，必须超越政府间的政治分歧。”
3月31日，德黑兰，伊朗的自由塔被指责美国“经济恐怖主义”的信息照亮，因为在COVID-19冠状病毒大流行期间，美国一直在进行制裁。
签署国包括前国务卿和美国驻联合国大使马德琳·奥尔布赖特、前瑞典外交部长和国际原子能机构总干事汉斯·布利克斯、前北约秘书长和比利时外交部长威利·克拉斯。
国家安全领导人小组建议的紧急措施包括提供抗击冠状病毒爆发所需的资源。其他措施包括加强外国资产管制办公室的人员配备和其他资源，以加快发放许可证，向关心与伊朗实体进行交易的银行和公司发出慰问信，定期提供瑞士人道主义贸易安排(SHTA)的最新情况，以及通过支持贸易交流工具支持人道主义贸易。
专家们还建议美国明确表示，获得从伊朗购买石油豁免的国家可以将这笔钱用于那里的人道主义出口，华盛顿向世界卫生组织提供资金援助伊朗，特朗普政府不干涉国际货币基金组织(IMF)关于是否批准的辩论德黑兰要求50亿美元的紧急融资。
美国前负责政治事务的副国务卿、驻六个不同国家的大使托马斯·皮克林(Thomas Pickering)周一在一次新闻发布会上表示:“在现阶段，没有理由对寻求改善健康状况和应对COVID-19大流行的伊朗人民进行恶意干预，我们完全有理由支持这些特定的做法。”
国务院拒绝对此发表评论新闻周刊。然而，周一晚些时候，美国国务院发布了一份题为“伊朗的制裁救济骗局”的概况介绍，其中警告称，“伊朗为获得制裁救济而发动的狡猾的外国影响运动，不是为了救济或伊朗人民的健康，而是为了为其恐怖行动筹集资金。”
3月31日，德黑兰，一名志愿者在冠状病毒大流行期间喷洒消毒剂。伊朗一直在与该地区最严重的冠状病毒病COVID-19爆发作斗争，报告病例超过64，500例，可能还有更多病例没有记录。
美国国务院指责伊朗伊斯兰共和国囤积了数十亿美元，用于政府工资、军费开支和对国外合作准军事组织的支持，而不是用于该国的卫生部门或其他重要服务。
“美国将继续支持伊朗人民的需求和愿望，他们是伊朗政权遭受苦难最久的受害者，”该概况介绍说，回应了庞贝之前的承诺，即特朗普政府的行动符合伊朗人民的最佳利益会在大流行期间提供帮助。
伊朗总统哈桑·鲁哈尼拒绝了美国以援助代替解除制裁的提议。他的办公室周二宣布，最高领袖阿亚图拉·阿里·哈梅内伊(Ayatollah Ali Khamenei)批准了10亿美元的撤资，以打击COVID-19，与此同时，伊朗官员继续呼吁支持特朗普政府的做法。
伊朗驻联合国代表团发言人阿里雷扎·米罗斯菲告诉记者新闻周刊“任何有良知的人都会同意，在Covid-19大流行时期对伊朗进行制裁是不合理的。”
他补充说:“任何人都应该感谢任何一个人、团体、公司或国家，他们有勇气站出来对抗美国的欺凌，并且反抗美国对伊朗人民实施经济恐怖主义的非法、不人道的制裁制度。”。
Statista提供的图表显示了截至4月8日初新冠状病毒的全球传播情况。140多万人受灾，其中308 000多人已经康复，83 500多人死亡。
上述图形由提供Statista
U.S. RESISTS INTERNATIONAL CALLS TO LIFT SANCTIONS ON IRAN AS IT STRUGGLES TO FIGHT CORONAVIRUS
The United States is resisting easing sanctions on Iran during the global coronavirus pandemic, despite calls from the international community, including former U.S. government officials, to do so for humanitarian reasons.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo defended President Donald Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran at a press briefing Tuesday, arguing the administration has "done remarkable work to deny the regime the resources they need to continue to carry out their terror campaign." The top U.S. diplomat hoped for a new Iranian government "with a change in outlook."
The briefing conference took place on the 40-year anniversary of Washington and Tehran severing relations after the 1979 Islamic Revolution that ousted a pro-West monarchy and led to a 444-day hostage crisis at the U.S. embassy in Iran. The feud escalated in recent years after the U.S. imposed additional sanctions designed to pressure Iran politically, but critics said the economic implications have also hindered Iran's ability to respond to crises such as the coronavirus pandemic.
The coronavirus outbreak has infected more than 64,000 people in Iran and killed nearly 4,000—among the highest fatality rates in the world. Officials there are demanding an end to sanctions that they argue has been delayed due to fear of being hit by punitive measures from the U.S.
On Monday, two dozen former U.S. and European officials also urged the Trump administration to adopt "targeted sanctions relief" in a statement organized by the European Leadership Network and The Iran Project.
"Like many Americans and Europeans, Iranians are also facing one of their country's darkest times in living memory. As the world grapples with COVID-19—the disease caused by the novel coronavirus—we must remember that an outbreak anywhere impacts people everywhere," the statement read. "In turn, reaching across borders to save lives is imperative for our own security and must override political differences among governments."
Iran's Azadi (Freedom) Tower is lit up with messages accusing the U.S. of "economic terrorism" due to its ongoing sanctions amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, in Tehran, March 31.
Signatories included former Secretary of State and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Madeleine Albright, former Swedish Foreign Minister and Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Hans Blix and former NATO Secretary-General and Belgian Foreign Minister Willy Claes.
Immediate measures recommended by the group of national security leaders involved supplying the resources necessary to fight the coronavirus outbreak. Others included bolstering staffing and other resources at the Office of Foreign Assets Control to expedite licensing, issuing comfort letters to banks and companies concerned about conducting transactions with Iranian entities, offering regular updates on the Swiss Humanitarian Trade Arrangement (SHTA) and supporting humanitarian trade through the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX).
The experts also recommended the U.S. make clear that countries granted exemptions to buy oil from Iran could use that money for humanitarian exports there, that Washington provides funding to the World Health Organization to assist Iran and that the Trump administration not interfere in the International Monetary Fund's debate on whether to grant Tehran's request for a $5 billion emergency financing.
One signatory, former U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs and ambassador to six different nations, Thomas Pickering, affirmed Monday during a press call: "There is no reason at this stage why the sanctions effort should interfere in a malign way with the people of Iran seeking to improve their health and deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, and there is every reason in our view to support these particular approaches."
The State Department declined to comment when contacted by Newsweek. Later Monday, however, the State Department issued a fact sheet entitled "Iran's Sanctions Relief Scam" that warned that "Iran's slick foreign influence campaign to obtain sanctions relief is not intended for the relief or health of the Iranian people but to raise funds for its terror operations."
A volunteer sprays disinfectant during the coronavirus pandemic on March 31, in Tehran. Iran has been battling the worst outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus disease in the region with over 64,500 reported cases and potentially many more not recorded.
The State Department accuses the Islamic Republic of hoarding billions of dollars to devote to government salaries, military spending and support for partnered paramilitary groups abroad rather than the country's health sector or other vital services.
"The United States will continue to support the needs and aspirations of the Iranian people, who are the longest-suffering victims of the Iranian regime," the fact sheet stated, echoing Pompeo's previous promises that the Trump administration was acting in the best interest of Iran's population and would provide assistance during the pandemic.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has rejected offers of U.S. aid in lieu of lifting sanctions. His office announced Tuesday that supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei approved the withdrawal of $1 billion to fight COVID-19 as Iranian officials continued to appeal for support against the Trump administration's approach.
Alireza Miryousefi, spokesperson for the Iranian Mission to the U.N., told Newsweek that "any human with a conscience would agree that sanctions on Iran at a time of the Covid-19 pandemic is unconscionable."
"Anybody should be grateful to any one, group, company or country that will have the courage to stand up to U.S. bullying and furthermore, defy its illegal, inhuman sanctions regime that is waging economic terrorism on the Iranian people," he added.
A graphic provided by Statista shows the global spread of the new coronavirus as of early April 8. More than 1.4 million people have been afflicted, more than 308,000 of whom have recovered and over 83,500 of whom have died.
The above graphics were provided by Statista.
