(Photo: WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Ali Khara via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY)
This week, the United States sent a blunt message to Iran: the spread of coronavirus will not save it from U.S. sanctions that strangle its oil revenues and weaken its economy.
As the deadly coronavirus outbreak further isolates and cripples the Middle Eastern country, the Trump administration said Friday it will not give sanctions relief to Iran.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, speaking at a news conference, called on Iran to free detained American people - and made it clear that Washington would sustain maximum pressure to shock Iran's oil exports.
China urged the United States on Monday to lift sanctions on Iran immediately in the face of the Middle East response to the global health crisis.
The Islamic Republic is the hardest hit by the coronavirus in the Middle East, with its death toll climbing to 1,284 and one person dying of it every 10 minutes and 50 being infected every hour, the health ministry said.
"The whole world should know that humanitarian assistance to Iran is wide open, it is not approved," Pompeo said during a Friday briefing at the White House with United States President Donald Trump.
The U.S. campaign aims to push Iran to curb its nuclear, missile and regional activities and started after the 2018 withdrawal of Trump from the Iran nuclear agreement.
"Continued sanctions against Iran were against humanitarianism and hindered the country's disease response and distribution of humanitarian assistance by the United Nations and other agencies,"
China's foreign ministry disclosed on Twitter.
The United States, claiming that its "maximum pressure" campaign to stop Iran's nuclear, missile and regional activities did not hinder the flow of humanitarian goods, imposed new penalties this week.
Once again, when asked if the administration would consider lifting U.S. sanctions against Iran, Trump doubled down by saying, "They know the answer, Iran's leaders, they know the answer to your question."
Pompeo also said the State Department blacklisted nine companies around the world for participating in what they called "important transactions" for Iranian petrochemicals trade.
The Department of Commerce said it would appoint six individuals - including five Iranian nuclear scientists - and 18 U.S. companies to the "Name List" to support Iran's nuclear program.
Trump unilaterally re-imposed restrictions on Tehran's petroleum exports in 2018 after the United States withdrew from Tehran's 2015 nuclear agreement with six world powers.
Iran said last week it had sought $5 billion in emergency funding from the International Monetary Fund to tackle the coronavirus outbreak.
