Iran "Korean Government Showed Willingness to Correct Mistake but Insufficient"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed that although the South Korean government showed a willingness to correct the mistake regarding President Yoon Suk-yeol's remark that "the enemy of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is Iran," it was not sufficient.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the state-run IRNA news agency on the 23rd (local time), Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a regular press conference that "We conveyed a serious stance in Tehran and Seoul," and "During the talks, the South Korean government showed a willingness to correct the mistake."

However, he added, "From our perspective, the (South Korean government's) measures were not sufficient."

Earlier, on the 18th, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Yoon Kang-hyun, South Korea’s ambassador to Iran, expressing regret that "the South Korean president's remarks hinder friendly relations (with Middle Eastern countries) and damage regional peace and stability."

On the 19th, Cho Hyun-dong, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, also summoned the Iranian ambassador to South Korea and explained that President Yoon's remarks were "intended as encouragement for our troops serving in the UAE and are completely unrelated to Iran's international relations, including Korea-Iran relations."

Meanwhile, on the same day, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs repeatedly urged the South Korean government to fulfill its promise to return frozen funds. Currently, about 7 billion dollars of Iranian funds are frozen in Korean won in South Korea. These accounts were frozen after the U.S. government withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA - Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) in 2018 and reinstated sanctions against Iran, freezing Iran’s oil sales proceeds accounts. This is known to be the largest portion of Iran’s overseas frozen assets.