In an interview with Associated Press, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan stressed that lifting the US sanctions on Iran would help this country to fight against the coronavirus.

In a further call for action from the international community, Khan said, “It was time to end US sanctions on Iran, where one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the world has unfolded.”

“Iran has struggled to respond in part because of crippling sanctions imposed by the Trump administration,” he added.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has also sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday, urging the body to disregard Washington sanctions on Tehran amid coronavirus outbreak.

As of Tuesday, the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak, officially known as COVID-19, in Iran has risen to 988 with 16,169 confirmed cases.

Reporter’s code: 50101