Speaking to ILNA, Tanhaei said that sanctions and freezing Iran’s assets have affected the trade ties between Iran and South Korea as the trade volume is currently in its lowest level in the past 15 years.

On the fate of Iran’s frozen funds in South Korea, he said South Koreans most probably would return the money via banks of Woori and IBK, adding that some portion of the money will be paid through purchasing goods and some would be in cash.

He went on to say that based on the recent talks with Seoul, it seems the problem of the frozen assets would be resolved soon and it had direct relation with the result of the nuclear talks in the JCPOA.

Tanhaei noted that South Koreans are trying to keep their relations with Iran and they are planning for Iran’s frozen assets but it is still unknown how they would return the money.

He reiterated that Iran has asked South Korea to return its money in cash or if they want to give goods, it is better they do not give made goods and instead they give us industrial or medical equipment. He admitted that Koreans are still silent on it but it seems they want to give goods in exchange for the money.

Tanhaei added that Iran has received medical products in exchange of some part of its money and it is ready to vaccine in exchange of the remaining part of the money.

He expressed hope South Koreans give Iran medical, petrochemical and chemical equipment which will help the country to have better investment for the future.

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“Mechanisms have been agreed, but apparently the Koreans have not yet received the necessary permits, so they say they are pursuing the issue,” he added.

“Iran thinks that it is not necessary to obtain a license from the Americans, but the Korean side is still trying to obtain this license from the United States to release Iranian blocked assets in Korea,” Zarif noted.

The Korean foreign ministry said last Tuesday that the Iranian assets locked in South Korea will be released after consultations with the United States. “Our government has been in talks with Iran about ways to use the frozen assets, and the Iran side has expressed its consent to the proposals we have made.”

“The actual unfreezing of the assets will be carried out through consultations with related countries, including the United States,” it added.

The announcement came after the Central Bank of Iran said it had reached an agreement with South Korea on the release of frozen Iranian assets in the East Asian country.

Since 2019 when then US president, Donald Trump, ended the US sanctions waivers for South Korea to buy Iran’s oil, Tehran and Seoul have been at loggerheads over the latter’s blocking of some seven billion dollars of Iran’s cash assets.

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