Washington – The Biden administration has paved the way for the eventual release of five American citizens detained in Iran by granting exemptions to international banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian funds from South Korea to Qatar, without having to fear US sanctions. Additionally, as part of the agreement, the government agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the United States.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed the sanctions relief last week, a U.S. official told CBS News, a month after U.S. and Iranian officials said an agreement in principle had been reached.
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Congress was not informed of the waiver decision until Monday, according to a congressional notice obtained by The Associated Press. The U.S. official confirmed that the administration had informed Congress of the move and said the waiver was one of the final steps before the deal could be finalized.
The outlines of the swap had been previously announced and the waiver was expected. However, the notification marks the first time the administration has announced it is releasing five Iranian prisoners under the deal. The names of the prisoners were not mentioned.
“On September 8, Secretary Blinken took a procedural step in an ongoing process to ensure that Iranian funds can be transferred from one escrow account to another and remain restricted to humanitarian trade,” National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in an explanation. “As we have said from the beginning, this is an agreement to secure the release of five Americans who have been unjustly detained. This remains a delicate and ongoing process. Although this is a step in the process, no individuals have been or will be released into U.S. custody this week. We have kept Congress fully informed about this process from the beginning – well before today – and will continue to do so, including with additional briefings already scheduled for this week.”
The waiver is likely to draw criticism of President Biden from Republicans and others because the deal will boost Iran’s economy at a time when Iran poses a growing threat to U.S. troops and allies in the Middle East.
The waiver means European, Middle Eastern and Asian banks will not run afoul of U.S. sanctions if they convert the money frozen in South Korea and transfer it to Qatar’s central bank, where it will be held for Iran to use to buy humanitarian goods becomes.
The transfer of the $6 billion was the crucial element of the prisoner release deal that led to four of the five American detainees from Iranian prisons being transferred to house arrest last month. The fifth prisoner was already under house arrest.
Due to numerous US sanctions against foreign banks that do business on behalf of Iran, several European countries resisted participating in the transfer. Blinken’s waiver is intended to allay her concerns about the threat of US sanctions.
The American prisoners include Siamak Namazi, who was arrested in 2015 and later sentenced to 10 years in prison on internationally criticized espionage charges; Emad Sharghi, a venture capitalist, sentenced to 10 years in prison; and Morad Tahbaz, a British-American conservationist of Iranian descent who was arrested in 2018 and also received a 10-year prison sentence. The fourth and fifth prisoners have not been identified.
Sharghi’s family members told “Face the Nation” last month that they were holding their breath as the highly sensitive negotiations to return Americans home were conducted.
“My family and I are completely out of control,” said his sister Neda Sharghi. “We are incredibly nervous about what happens next.”
Blinken outlined the parameters of the agreement in the notice to Congress, writing: “To facilitate their release, the United States has committed to releasing five Iranian nationals currently detained in the United States and to the transfer of approximately $6 billion.” to allow restricted Iranian funds.” [South Korea] to restricted accounts in Qatar, where the funds are only available for humanitarian trade.”
The sanctions exemption applies to banks and other financial institutions in South Korea, Germany, Ireland, Qatar and Switzerland.
“I determine that it is in the national security interest of the United States to refrain from imposing sanctions … with respect to foreign financial institutions subject to the primary jurisdiction of Germany, Ireland, Qatar, the Republic of Korea, and Switzerland directly “Be notified in writing by the U.S. Government to the extent necessary to allow these institutions to participate in transactions occurring on or after August 9, 2023,” Blinken wrote.
Sanctions exemptions apply to transactions involving previously penalized companies such as the National Iranian Oil Company and the Central Bank of Iran “to transfer funds from accounts in the Republic of Korea to accounts in Switzerland and Germany and from accounts in Switzerland and Germany transfer to accounts in Qatar. and to use the transferred funds for further humanitarian transactions in accordance with written instructions from the U.S. Government,” he wrote.