Iranians Struggle to Get Medicines

A combination of an awful economy and tightening economic sanctions has meant scrambling to get medicines on the part of Iranian civilians, the BBC reports:

Iran’s worsening shortage of critical medicine is the result of the country’s dire economic situation, which analysts say is caused by a combination of the ever-tightening Western sanctions against the Islamic Republic, as well as by economic missteps there.

The US state department is quick to point out that export of medicine and other humanitarian goods are specifically exempted from the measures intended to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions, which the country says are solely peaceful but which Western powers suspect have military aims.

But the sanctions levied against Iranian banks, which are effectively cut off from the global financial system, have made it nigh impossible for Iranian companies to finance imports of whole drugs or raw ingredients, analysts say.

“There is not a proper channel through which they can pay, unless they send somebody to Pfizer with a suitcase full of cash,” says Muhammad Sahimi, an Iranian political analyst and engineering professor at the University of Southern California.

(Thanks to Jason Ditz for his blog post.)

Anonymous

This is so transparent. These sanctions prop up the Iranian regime (they can always blame us for their mess-ups) just like we’ve propped up Castro for all these years. Always handy to have a villain to scare the home folks.
Dan

Politicians are scum. In a just world everyone of them that voted for all these sanctions would suffer a worse fate than the innocent people’s lives they destroy.
Anon

Blame is on both sides – not just the US. Clearly, the Iranian regime is just as callous.

Importantly, it should be noted that neither repub/dem parties and administration supported secularism or reform islam into these countries. Especially, when there was an uprising in 2009 against the regime. Instead, that opportunity was ignored to support or provide awareness that as a peaceful, non-interventionist means to get rid of this brutal, vicious iranian regime that clearly is not working for its people’s wellbeing, but more interested in using its ability to help US politicians by scaring people.
Dan

Of course Iran’s government is awful. Every State across the globe is an evil institution. Still, it takes a special kind of evil to put sanctions on a country when everyone knows full well all the horrendous, life destroying effects are going to be felt by innocent bystanders. As bad as Iraq’s government was, it was the sanctions on their country that resulted in 500,000 children dying. And as bad is Iran’s government is, it is the US government terrorizing the planet and dropping bombs on children.
anon

It appears essentially taking sides in making out Iran to be the victim. Yes, Iranian people as other people across the globe are victims or various governments, not just Muslims. Perhaps you are saying that yes other states are not good, but the US is the worst and that should be our focus and not really focusing on wanting other states to change.

The US government does not act alone – it works closely with other foreign governments like China (to allow its exports to balloon), Saudia Arabia, Israel, and others.

Iranian regime knows its voice is effective at scaring americans, and hence does it purposefully. If it was not interested in sanctions and it was not interested in being attacked otherwise, it would curtail its speech that us politicians display. So, the blame is on both sides equally. At best, it is like taking sides of leaning towards republican or democrat, they are virtually identical and is self-defeating to lean one way or the other.
Anonymous

“but the US is the worst and that should be our focus and not really focusing on wanting other states to change.”

>> I think it has more to do with the fact that the US govt has been the aggressor, much moreso than Iran.
Dan

I condemned all States across the entire globe. Iran’s government will get no love from me. I’m simply pointing out that the sanctions that will end up causing innocent men, women, and children to die is the result of actions taken by US politicians and any other country that also enacts the sanctions. I’m making the innocent people out to be the victims, not Iran’s government. And who gives a shit what Iranian politicians say? That in no way justifies an act of aggression. Especially one where the victims of the aggression did nothing wrong.

And yes, I do believe the US government is the worst. I don’t care if you want to heap blame on both sides, but the people taking the violent action should receive the lions share of the blame. I think every government is evil, so I’m not about to defend any of them, but violent actions against innocent people is worse than evil words by politicians.