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Addressing a meeting of the Middle East and North Africa finance ministers and central banks governors via videoconference on Wednesday, he appreciated IMF's move to provide the countries grappling with coronavirus with financial aid, saying that Iran is one of the hard-hit countries by the pandemic in MENA.
"It is also among the first states to request emergency resources under the RFI program," he said, noting that IMF is an international independent and apolitical institute, hoping that it would remain so.
Describing IMF as an international firefighter, Hemmati said, "We all participate in it so that whenever our house catches fire, we can call it and ask for help."
"Our nation expects the IMF to stand by them, not to give weight to political calculations in response to our demands," he reiterated.
Contending that humanitarian aspect of this crisis must be the guiding principle, the official said that RFI resources are being used by Iran to finance the purchase of drugs and medical equipment, which are needed to save lives and prevent the spread of the virus in the region.
Hemmati also said in an address to the IMF chief that this is a global crisis and the need for global cooperation has never been so strong. No country is safe unless all countries are safe.
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