"The U.S. and Qatar are working to unfreeze Iranian funds"

[Financial News]  


The United States is working with Qatar to allow part of Iran's $100 billion in frozen assets to be used first for humanitarian purposes, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 20th (local time), citing sources. It is one of the incentives Washington is offering to end the war with Iran.
According to the report, the plan has not yet been finalized, but the U.S. intends to first allow Iran to use $6 billion in frozen funds held in Qatar. The money would come from the Central Bank of Iran and could be used to buy food, medicine, and other humanitarian supplies, sources said. They added that the funds are mostly proceeds from oil sales but have been trapped overseas by sanctions.
Some sources said Iran wants the first release to open the way for $24 billion in sanctions relief.
However, Iran must first accept Washington's demands. The frozen assets are expected to be released in stages depending on future progress in talks between the U.S. and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, as well as the outcome of nuclear negotiations.
This is expected to become a vital lifeline for Iran.
Sanam Vakil, Middle East director at the London think tank Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, said that "even a limited easing of assets would serve as both an economic lifeline and a signal of political de-escalation." He added that if Iran reaches an agreement with the U.S., it could stabilize its currency and ease domestic economic pressure.
However, the road to ending the war remains long, with many obstacles still ahead, as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) again declared on the 20th that it would block the Strait of Hormuz.
The issue of removing enriched nuclear material, one of the war's objectives, has also not yet been resolved.
The U.S. has put in place a kind of safeguard.
Under the armistice agreement signed with Iran, Washington agreed to make Iran's frozen assets fully available, but it does not plan to release everything at once. The funds are to be unfrozen gradually depending on Iran's concessions in follow-up negotiations.
Qatar is a bargaining chip in talks with Iran.
According to the WSJ, the U.S. wants to use Qatar to transparently monitor how Iran spends the frozen funds and to control Iran's ability to use the money.
Iran is in a desperate situation. It must cope with a collapsing currency, runaway inflation, and the reconstruction of infrastructure devastated by the war.
It urgently needs the funds frozen overseas.
Still, both sides continue to test each other's resolve.
Shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump electronically signed the armistice MOU on the 17th, Mojtaba Khamenei claimed on social media X that "Trump agreed to halt hostile acts because of desperation." Trump immediately pushed back, saying, "They are finished," and added, "We will see whether they honor the agreed 60 days, but they won't get a single penny."
Iran also scrapped a follow-up meeting in Switzerland scheduled for the 19th. On the 20th, it sent its negotiating team to Switzerland, while the IRGC separately declared a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, continuing a tense standoff with the U.S.

dympna@fnnews.com Song Kyung-jae Reporter