Iran Deputy Foreign Minister: Any Agreement with the U.S. Must Include a Clause for Releasing Half of Iran's Frozen Assets

Odaily Planet Daily News According to Iran's Tasnim News Agency, Kazem Gharibabadi, the Deputy Minister for Legal and International Affairs of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that once any memorandum of understanding is signed with the United States, at least 50% of Iran's frozen financial assets must be immediately unfrozen. Gharibabadi said that Tehran will only consider any draft agreement as final when "its interests and concerns are fully taken into account." Gharibabadi stated, "Iran insists that, at a minimum, 50% of these funds must be made available to Iran immediately after the signing of the memorandum of understanding." He added that the remaining funds should be "unfrozen within a limited period of one to two months after the agreement is signed." Gharibabadi noted that these assets belong to Iran, were "illegally frozen" by the United States, and unfreezing them is a core demand of any potential understanding. He stated that the remaining details of the mechanism for accessing the funds, including technical and financial arrangements, will be subject to further negotiations within the 60-day implementation period following the signing of the memorandum. (Jin Shi)