Iran Assets to Be Refrozen in a Month? "Biden Administration Keeps Possibility Open"

Both Republican and Democratic Parties Emphasize Need to Refreeze
Yellen "Does Not Exclude Any Measures from Discussion"

The Biden administration is facing increasing difficulties over the issue of re-freezing Iran's assets worth $6 billion (approximately 8 trillion won), which are suspected to be backing the Palestinian armed group Hamas, just over a month after the initial freeze. Since the outbreak of the Israel-Palestine war, voices calling for the freezing of Iran's assets have grown louder not only among the opposition Republican Party but also within the ruling Democratic Party. However, it is reported that the administration is struggling because it has yet to secure evidence that Iran was involved in the current situation.

President Joe Biden of the United States [Photo by EPA Yonhap News]

On the 11th (local time), Bloomberg News reported that "the Biden administration is leaning toward freezing $6 billion of Iran's assets following Hamas's attack on Israel."

The key issue is whether Iran participated in Hamas's attack on Israel. Biden administration intelligence agencies are reportedly yet to obtain evidence that Iran ordered or was directly involved in the airstrike by Hamas. However, U.S. intelligence agencies believe that Iran was aware of Hamas's plan to attack Israel in advance, Bloomberg cited sources as saying.

Earlier, in August, the U.S. facilitated a prisoner exchange negotiation with Iran and, under the promise that the funds would be used solely for humanitarian purposes, transferred $6 billion of Iran's frozen oil export proceeds held in South Korea to a Qatari bank to be provided to Iran. Currently, these funds remain deposited in the Qatari bank, and the U.S. has stated that it can re-freeze them.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on the same day regarding sanctions against Iran that no options are off the table, stating, "We will not exclude any possible measures from discussion," hinting at the possibility of re-freezing. This came after John Kirby, National Security Council (NSC) Strategic Communications Coordinator, said the previous day that "it is possible to re-freeze at any time," again mentioning the possibility.

Bloomberg analyzed that "this issue highlights the Biden administration's difficulty in balancing Middle East policy amid the chaos caused by Hamas's airstrike," and that re-freezing Iran's assets would strengthen criticism that the August agreement was a mistake.

In fact, immediately after Hamas's airstrike, the Republican Party strongly criticized the Biden administration's unfreezing of Iran's assets. Twenty Republican senators and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy urged the Biden administration to re-freeze the assets, arguing that Iran could use the money to support terrorist organizations such as Hamas.

Especially, former President Donald Trump also voiced the need to re-freeze Iran's assets on the same day. He posted on his social media platform Truth Social, which he created, saying, "Annoying Joe Biden must re-freeze the $6 billion in assets right now before it's too late," and added, "Biden caused this war, and it will only get worse."

Within the ruling Democratic Party, senators are also mentioning the need for re-freezing. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on the same day that, in unanimous agreement with Republican Senator Tom Cotton, they would introduce a bill to reimpose the freeze on Iran's assets. McConnell pointed out, "It is clear that resources and dangerous weapons flow from Iran to terrorists in the Middle East."

Iran, on the other hand, maintains that re-freezing is not possible. The Iranian mission to the United Nations responded to related questions on the same day, saying, "The senators and the U.S. government demanding re-freezing clearly know that they cannot break the agreement," and added, "Those funds belong to the legitimate Iranian people and are intended by the Iranian government to secure essential and non-sanctioned necessities for the Iranian people."

Meanwhile, President Biden emphasized during a meeting with Jewish leaders at the White House on the same day that "my commitment to ensuring Israel's security and the safety of Jewish people remains unwavering." He explained that the U.S. has sent an aircraft carrier strike group and fighter jets near Israel and stated, "And I have clearly told Iran to 'be careful.'" This is interpreted as a warning to Iran not to support Hamas or proxy forces in attacking Israel or to exploit the chaos to attack U.S. forces in the region.

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