Iran supreme leader on virus, US tensions

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Friday banned Iran from importing American Pfizer-BioNTech and Britain's AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines, a reflection of mistrust toward the West.

In a televised speech, he said the import of American and British vaccines was "forbidden," referring to the surging death tolls from the virus in both countries.

"I really do not trust them," Khamenei said of those nations. "Sometimes they seek to try out their vaccines on other nations to see if it works or not," he said. "I am not optimistic (about) France, either."

However, Khamenei okayed the import of vaccines from other "safe" places, and remains supportive of Iran's efforts toward producing a vaccine.

The country began testing its vaccines on humans in December. The product is expected to hit the local market in spring.

Hardliners in Iran have long opposed the U.S-made vaccines. Iran's Revolutionary Guard in December rejected the use of foreign-made vaccines altogether.

Gen. Mohammad Reza Naghdi said the Guard would not recommend the injection of any foreign vaccine candidates based on genetic material known as messenger RNA, which carries the instructions for cells to make proteins.

Authorities said then that U.S.-based benefactors plan to deploy scores of thousands of Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus to Iran.

Iran retains routes to vaccines despite sanctions, including through its participation in COVAX.

International banks and financial institutions are reluctant to deal with Iran for fear of American penalties.