Iran is requesting the immediate release of $12 billion in frozen assets held in Qatar as a condition for moving on with negotiations with the United States, according to a report by Iran International, citing people familiar with the talks.
According to sources cited in the story, the $12 billion would only be the first tranche that Tehran is requesting in order to start the suggested diplomatic route; it is not the total sum that Iran eventually wants released globally under a more comprehensive accord.
Iran has reportedly stressed that any final agreement with Washington must eventually unfreeze and make all of its frozen foreign assets completely accessible.
Tehran and Washington are still at odds over one or two provisions in a draft memorandum of understanding (MoU), according to Tasnim News Agency, which is associated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
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Tasnim claims that before final talks start, Iran wants the initial accord with the US to involve the release of at least some of its blocked funds. Additionally, Tehran wants assurances that any money released will be freely accessible.
According to the source, Tehran is demanding access to finances and partial sanctions relief before agreeing to a more comprehensive deal, while Washington is trying to link the release of Iranian assets to a final nuclear agreement.
Disagreements over frozen assets could yet completely derail the talks, Tasnim cautioned.
Reopening the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most significant oil shipping lanes in the world, is one of the main components of the proposed accord.
The proposed Memorandum of Understanding, according to an Axios article, stipulates that Iran will remove naval mines allegedly placed in the region and that the strait would stay open without toll fees.
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In exchange, the US would withdraw portions of its naval blockade, relax restrictions on Iranian ports, and waive some penalties, enabling Iran to more easily resume oil shipments.
According to reports, talks about Iran's nuclear program and its enriched uranium stockpile would only occur during the last stages of negotiations, following the agreement on the Memorandum of Understanding and a proposed 60-day truce.
But according to reports, the draft agreement would force Iran to stop pursuing nuclear weapons.
Following recent talks in Tehran with a delegation from Qatar on Iran's blocked assets, Abdolnaser Hemmati travelled to Doha on Monday.
In the meantime, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met with Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Doha.
The purpose of the discussions, according to officials, is to examine the conditions of a potential cease-fire between Iran and the United States.
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