Page 54 - BNE_magazine_05_2020

54 I Eurasia bne May 2020
Rouhani seen at his televised cabinet meeting on April 8.
Iran tells IMF ‘do your duty’ by paying
out emergency coronavirus loan
Daniel Rad
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani
on April 8 called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to meet its commitments by awarding Iran
a requested $5bn in emergency funding to help it address its coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the worst in the Middle East. There are fears among Iranian and European officials that the US Trump administration is blocking the payment.
Rouhani said the IMF would be “discriminating against Iran” if it failed to provide the funding from its Rapid Financing Initiative, which is supposed to aid countries faced with sudden shocks such as natural disasters.
“I urge international organisations to fulfil their duties ... We are a member of the IMF,” Rouhani said at a televised cabinet meeting, adding: “There should be no discrimination in giving loans.” Iran, the president said, was a fully
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paid-up member of both the IMF and World Bank and puts some of its resources at their disposal.
“If there is to be discrimination between Iran and other countries, it is not tolerable for us and world public opinion,” Rouhani added. "We haven't asked for anything from the Fund
for the last 50 years even as we have fulfilled our obligations. If they [the IMF] do not fulfil their duties in these difficult circumstances, the world will have a different take on this issue," Rouhani added.
Rouhani also tweeted his outrage in English.