The US should lift sanctions against Iran, which prevent the country from fighting the coronavirus outbreak, said Iranian president’s adviser Hesameddin Ashena.

“Don’t you understand that coronavirus is an international problem? The more it spreads here, the more likely it is to spread there! Don’t wait for an invitation to help contain the virus, lift the damn sanctions, which is impeding us from tackling it swiftly!” Ashena tweeted. “COVID-19 is international & circulates globally. The irony of @realdonaldTrump’s sanctions, which have ravaged Iran’s public health infrastructure, is that it torpedoed the virus to America. Sanctions need to be lifted to help contain a global problem- no more clowning around!”

The Iranian health ministry reported the country's first cases of coronavirus on February 19. Infected were detected in the city of Qom. According to official information, the number of cases of infection in Iran is 978, and at least 54 deaths were recorded.

.@realdonaldtrump: Don’t you understand that coronavirus is an international problem? The more it spreads here, the more likely it is to spread there! Don’t wait for an invitation to help contain the virus, lift the damn sanctions, which is impeding us from tackling it swiftly!

— Hesameddin Ashena (@hesamodin1) March 2, 2020