Iran Central Bank Governor: "South Korea's Freezing of Iran Assets Is a Big Mistake"

Governor of Iran Central Bank Holds Talks with Korean Delegation
Discussion on Korean Ship Seizure and Iran Asset Freeze

On the 4th, the Korean-flagged vessel 'Hanguk Chemi' being captured by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. On the right is the high-speed boat used by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. The photo shows the CCTV footage at the time of capture. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] The governor of Iran's central bank, who seized a Korean vessel, strongly criticized South Korea's freezing of Iranian assets during a meeting with the South Korean delegation visiting Iran.

On the 11th (local time), according to Iran's semi-official Tasnim News Agency, Abdolnaser Hemmati, governor of Iran's central bank, said at a meeting with the delegation led by Choi Jong-geon, Vice Foreign Minister, "South Korea's freezing of Iran's assets is a grave mistake and unacceptable."

He claimed that during his visit to Korea one and a half years ago, Korean officials promised to cooperate in resolving this issue, but nothing has been accomplished. He added, "Iran has initiated legal measures to secure its assets," emphasizing, "If negotiations fail to produce results, we will continue with legal procedures."

He said, "Regarding this issue, we expect South Korea to act independently from the pressure of the soon-to-leave U.S. administration," and added, "The long-standing and close relationship between South Korea and Iran should not be influenced by other countries or individuals like Donald Trump (U.S. President)."

In 2010, Iran opened won-denominated accounts at IBK Industrial Bank and Woori Bank under the name of Iran's central bank and received payments for oil exports through these accounts. However, in 2018, the U.S. government placed Iran's central bank on the sanctions list, halting transactions through these accounts. Since then, the Iranian government has demanded the release of these frozen funds.

On the 4th, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran seized the Korean chemical tanker Korea Chemie in the Gulf region, citing marine pollution. Korea Chemie had 20 people on board, including 5 Koreans, and is reported to be detained on the vessel at Bandar Abbas port. It is presumed that Iran seized Korea Chemie due to the $7 billion (approximately 7.6 trillion KRW) of Iranian frozen assets in South Korea.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.