US agrees to unfreeze Iranian funds abroad – media

Assets previously blocked by Washington by various means reportedly total more than $100 billion

Washington has agreed to release frozen Iranian assets held in Qatar and other foreign jurisdictions, a move seen as a sign of “seriousness” in reaching a deal between the US and the Islamic Republic, Reuters reported on Saturday, citing a senior Iranian source. Negotiators from both countries have arrived in Pakistan for talks.

High-level Iranian and US delegations arrived in Islamabad on Saturday to continue negotiations on a proposed peace framework. Some elements of the plan have been circulated in media reports, although no official details have been released by either side.

Unfreezing the assets is “directly linked to ensuring safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz”, a key issue in the talks, an unnamed official told the news agency. The source did not disclose the amount, while a second Iranian official said the US was ready to release $6 billion held in Qatar.

However, CBS News reported, citing a senior US official, that the White House hasn’t agreed to authorize release of the funds.

The exact value of Iran’s frozen assets remains unclear, though by some estimates the figure exceeds $100 billion. It includes funds immobilized directly in the US, assets restricted abroad, oil revenues in escrow, and central bank reserves blocked due to US secondary sanctions.

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The $6 billion now held in Qatar was transferred there in September 2023 under a US-Iran prisoner swap mediated by Doha, involving the release of five Americans detained in Iran and five Iranians held in the US. Washington said the money would be limited to humanitarian use, with payments only to approved vendors under US Treasury oversight.

However, following the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel by Iranian ally Hamas, the administration of then-President Joe Biden re-froze the funds, stating that Iran wouldn’t be able to access the money for the foreseeable future and that Washington retained the right to fully block the account.

The funds, originally frozen in 2018, stem from Iranian oil sales to South Korea and had been held in South Korean banks after President Donald Trump reimposed sanctions on Iran and withdrew from the nuclear deal during his first term in office.