MNA � Islamic Republic of Iran will be turned into the largest producer of raw materials of pharmaceuticals in the Middle East region in very near future.

Iranian Minister of Health and Medical Education Dr. Saeed Namaki made the remarks on Sun. and added, �benefited from high scientific capacity and capability of domestic scientists and materials needed to produce pharmaceuticals, Islamic Republic of Iran will be turned into the largest producer of pharmaceuticals in the Middle East region soon.�

Speaking in the inaugural ceremony of the first township of producing pharmaceutical�s raw materials in the Middle East region in Markazi province, Arak on Sunday through video conference, Namaki said, �despite cheap production of petrochemicals in Iran such as benzene, which is used in the production of intermediates for drug production, the country enjoys high capacity in producing raw materials of pharmaceuticals while these cheap raw materials are exported to the countries including India and China.�

Inauguration of the first township of producing raw materials of pharmaceuticals in the year named after �surge in production� is a giant step taken by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Namaki added.

This move has been taken at the condition that tough and cruel sanctions have been imposed by US against Iran, he added.