The Biden administration rejected a claim by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi that there will be no restrictions on $6 billion in oil sales proceeds that will be freed up as part of a prisoner swap.
(Bloomberg) — The Biden administration rejected a claim by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi that there will be no restrictions on $6 billion in oil sales proceeds that will be freed up as part of a prisoner swap.
“The facts of this arrangement are, when this money arrives in these accounts in Qatar, it will be held there under strict oversight by the US Treasury Department, and the money can only be used for humanitarian purposes,” Matthew Miller, the State Department spokesman, told reporters Tuesday.
It was a response to comments by Raisi that the money will be spent “wherever we need it,” according to excerpts from an interview released by NBC News earlier in the day.
As part of a pending deal to swap five Americans held by Iran with five Iranians in US custody, Secretary of State Antony Blinken notified Congress on Monday of a waiver that will assure German, Irish, Qatari, South Korean and Swiss banks that they can transfer the $6 billion from South Korea without fear of running afoul of US sanctions. Until the waiver, Miller said, banks were hesitant to handle transactions involving the money.
Miller also pushed back on domestic criticism of the Biden administration’s willingness to complete the deal, saying tough decisions were needed to bring home wrongfully detained Americans. No US taxpayer funds were involved, he said, because the $6 billion at issue always belonged to Iran.
The transfer of the funds from South Korea to a custodial account in Qatar is underway, Miller said, but he didn’t specify how much of the money has moved or where it is currently held.
“You should not expect to see any movement, in terms of the American citizens being released, this week,” he told reporters.
Rejecting criticism of the deal from some Republicans, Miller suggested the Biden administration is taking a tougher position than the Trump administration on Iranian oil proceeds.
“Iran has always been able, under the regime set up by the previous administration, to access the funds in these accounts with no restrictions at all,” Miller said.
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