Iran, Pakistan hold virtual meeting for joint cooperation

Islamabad : A video conference of health ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Pakistan was held on Monday with the aim to strengthen joint cooperation and exchange experiences to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, reported IRNA.

A statement issued by Pakistan’s Health Ministry spokesperson said that Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr. Zafar Mirza and Iranian Minister of Health, Treatment and Medical Education Saeed Namaki during a virtual meeting discussed the prevailing situation due to the corona outbreak and bilateral relations.

The statement said: “The Ministers of Health of Iran and Pakistan in the video conference shared the steps and measures taken by each other’s governments to manage the outbreak of corona.”

It said the purpose of today’s meeting was to exchange experiences between the two neighboring countries to overcome the crisis in Corona.

Dr Mirza during the meeting praised the effective measures taken by the Iranian government against the Coronavirus.

He said that Pakistan has established National Command and Operations Center to overcome the challenge of Covid-19 adding that the center monitors the situation on daily basis.

He informed the Iranian minister that the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan monitors the situation himself. He told Minister Saeed Namaki that the first coronavirus case was reported in Pakistan on February 26.

During the meeting Iran’s health minister Saeed Namaki highlighted the close and fraternal relations between the two countries.

He said that Iran as a national policy promoted social distancing and is ready to share its experience with friendly and neighboring Pakistan.

Dr Mirza added that Pakistan has conducted more than 213,000 tests so far, and in the past 24 hours, nearly 10,000 corona tests have been performed in different parts of the country, trying to bring the screening level to 20,000 a day.

According to National Command and Operation Center the number of Covid-19 patients in Pakistan has soared to 20, 186 with 5,590 recoveries and 462 deaths.