Government: "Iran's Frozen Funds Transferred to Qatar... Expecting Normalization of Bilateral Relations"

The government has officially confirmed that Iran's won-denominated funds, which had been frozen domestically due to sanctions against Iran, have been transferred.

On the 19th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a joint statement saying, "The Iranian funds that had been frozen in Korea due to financial sanctions against Iran have recently been successfully transferred to a third country through close cooperation among the relevant countries."

The government added, "The resolution of the frozen funds issue was decisive not only due to the parties involved but also because of the constructive roles played by third countries such as Qatar and Switzerland. We would like to express our special gratitude for the constructive roles of these countries."

On the previous day, the United States and Iran completed the procedure of transferring about 6 billion dollars of Iran's crude oil export proceeds, which had been tied up in Korean banks, to Qatar via Switzerland while exchanging detainees.

The government explained, "Even after the Iranian frozen funds are transferred to Qatar, they are planned to be used for humanitarian purposes such as purchasing food and medicine, similar to how they were used in Korea," adding, "The government has shared our humanitarian trade experience with Qatar."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korean government has been making efforts to utilize the frozen funds through humanitarian trade such as purchasing medicines or by paying Iran's UN contributions on its behalf, given the situation where the funds could not be returned due to sanctions against Iran.

The government also explained, "With a clear recognition that these funds belong to the Iranian people, we have continuously engaged in diplomatic communication and consultations with the relevant countries for the ultimate resolution of the frozen funds issue."

With the resolution of the frozen funds issue, which had been a factor worsening Korea-Iran relations, it is expected that bilateral relations will move toward normalization.

The government emphasized, "We hope that bilateral relations will further develop in the future, taking this transfer of frozen funds as an opportunity."

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