IRNA – Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Thursday that Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a letter to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for removing all the unilateral sanctions imposed by the US to help fight coronavirus.

Mousavi wrote on his Twitter account that in his letter, a copy of which was sent to all international organizations' chiefs and foreign ministers of all countries, Zarif stressed the need for lifting all US' illegal and unilateral sanctions in order to be able to counter the highly contagious virus.

Meanwhile, Zarif on his Twitter account this morning announced a request by the Central Bank of Iran from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help fight coronavirus through, using the entity's "Rapid Financing Instrument ".

The Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) provides rapid financial assistance, which is available to all member countries facing an urgent balance of payments need. The RFI was created as part of a broader reform to make the IMF’s financial support more flexible to address the diverse needs of member-states. The RFI replaced the IMF’s previous emergency assistance policy and can be used in a wide range of circumstances.