US Unfreezing Iranian Funds 'Strictly' For Aid Purposes, Blinken Says

A U.S.-Iran agreement to unfreeze nearly $6 billion in Iranian funds in exchange for five imprisoned Americans will be carried out with “significant oversight” and provide Tehran with no sanctions relief, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters Aug. 15.

Under the deal, announced last week, the U.S. will transfer the Iranian assets, which are held in South Korea, to Iran to be used for humanitarian relief, including food and medicine. Blinken said the Biden administration from “day one” has had in place an “exemption for the use of funds for humanitarian purposes,” adding that the funds will be held in “special accounts” with oversight.

“This is a way of actually facilitating their use strictly for humanitarian purposes, and in a strictly controlled way,” Blinlen said. “Iran will not have direct access to these funds. There will be significant oversight and visibility from the United States.”