In her daily briefing on February 4, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said Iran's FM Mohammad Javad Zarif was the first among other countries that publically voiced support for the Beijing government in the fight against the killer virus.
She stressed that the support showed Iran’s commitment to its amicable ties with the Chinese nation.
According to Global Times, Hua Chunying further noted that Iran has donated three million masks to China.
In a tweet in Chinese on Tuesday, FM Zarif voiced his appreciation for China's successful measures to fight the epidemic, and went on to condemn the United States for “taking advantage” of the situation.
Chunying during a regular press conference on Monday said the United States is spreading fear over the outbreak of coronavirus by pulling Americans out of the Asian country and enforcing travel restrictions instead of providing significant aid to Beijing in curbing the deadly infection.
The virus was first reported in December in a seafood and poultry market in Wuhan, with a population of 11 million people.
As of Wednesday, the killer virus has taken the lives of 490 people and infected 24,324.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the flu-like virus a global emergency.
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