Disagreement Among Islamic Republic Officials Over Safety of Russian Vaccine; “With All Due Respect” We Will Vaccinate “Our Own Family First”!

There is an open disagreement among official Iranian authorities over the use of Chinese and Russian vaccines.

Some Iranian officials in recent days have expressed enthusiasm for purchasing the Russian vaccine known as “Sputnik V.” In his latest remarks, Saeid Namaki, Iran’s Health Minister, in response to criticisms about the safety of the Russian coronavirus vaccine, said: “With all due respect to some, we will vaccinate our own family first so that people know that their health is more important to us than anything else.”

This comes as Hossein Ali Shahryari, head of the Health and Treatment Commission of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, said: “It is clear I will not take the Russian vaccine.” However, he has emphasized that the vaccine will not be tested on people without transparent clinical trial phases.

On Saturday, Hossein Karmanpoor, the public relations officer of Iran’s Medical System Organization, also said that the “Sputnik V” vaccine does not have World Health Organization approval and is only approved by Iran’s Food and Drug Administration, and therefore cannot be used.

Earlier, Minoo Mehraz, who is currently a member of the National Coronavirus Combat Headquarters, had said that as a member of the medical staff, she would not receive this Russian vaccine.

Ms. Mehraz’s remarks were met with a response from Kianoosh Jahanpoor, the spokesman for Iran’s Food and Drug Administration, who said that Minoo Mehraz is not qualified to evaluate vaccines.

The disagreement over purchasing vaccines made by Russia and China comes as Ayatollah Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has banned the purchase of vaccines from Western countries.

According to official statistics, the outbreak of coronavirus disease in Iran has so far resulted in the death of at least 58,000 people.

Source: Voice of America