Iran Government: "Will Prioritize Recovering $1 Billion of Frozen Funds in Korea"

On the 21st, Yoo Jung-hyun, the Ambassador to Iran, and Hemmati, the Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, held a meeting at the Korean Embassy located in Tehran, Iran. [Image source=Official website of the Iranian government] [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] The Iranian government announced that it will prioritize recovering about 1 billion dollars (1.1 trillion won) of Iranian assets frozen in South Korea.

According to Bloomberg and other sources, Ali Rabiei, spokesperson for the Iranian government, stated at a press briefing on the 23rd (local time), "South Korea has agreed to release Iranian assets frozen in South Korean banks due to U.S. sanctions." He added, "As the first step, we expect to recover 1 billion dollars of assets belonging to the Central Bank of Iran."

This specific amount of funds to be unfrozen came just one day after Abdol Nasser Hemmati, Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, met with Ambassador Yoo Jung-hyun to Iran and announced that they had reached an agreement on the use of frozen assets in South Korea. Previously, the Iranian government stated that both South Korea and Iran agreed to transfer the frozen assets to locations desired by Iran, and that the Central Bank of Iran would notify the Korean side of the amount and destination banks for the transfer.

Regarding this, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs also announced on the same day that Iran agreed to South Korea’s proposal on the utilization of the frozen Iranian won funds. Ministry spokesperson Choi Young-sam said at a regular briefing, "During the meeting between Ambassador Yoo Jung-hyun and the Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, the Iranian side expressed agreement with the proposals presented by our side, indicating a basic consensus."

However, even though South Korea and Iran have reached a basic agreement, U.S. approval is essential for the release of the frozen funds. A Foreign Ministry official stated, "The actual release of the frozen funds will proceed through consultations with relevant countries including the United States."

Currently, the Iranian funds frozen in South Korea are estimated at 7 billion dollars (7.784 trillion won). In 2010, Iran opened won-denominated accounts under the name of the Central Bank of Iran at IBK Industrial Bank and Woori Bank, through which it received payments for crude oil exports. However, after the U.S. government placed the Central Bank of Iran on the sanctions list in 2018, transactions through these accounts were halted, and the Iranian government has been demanding the release of these frozen funds.

It is widely analyzed that Iran’s seizure of the South Korean chemical tanker "Korea Chem" near Oman on the 4th of last month, followed by the release of all crew members except the captain, was a measure to pressure for the release of these frozen funds.

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