A prisoner exchange between Iran and the US is scheduled to occur on Monday, September 18, according to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani.
"Iran's [frozen] assets in South Korea will be released and returned to the government and the nation today," he stated, as reported by Iran's ISNA news agency. "Furthermore, a prisoner exchange is scheduled for today," the diplomat added, noting that both parties will release five prisoners each.
According to Kanani, two of the released Iranian nationals in the US will return to the Islamic Republic, two will remain in the US, and another will go to a third country. In exchange, Tehran will hand over five US citizens held in Iranian prisons to the US side.
On August 10, The New York Times reported that the US and Iran had reached an agreement on a prisoner exchange. The White House confirmed the agreement on the same day but stated that the final announcement would come after the safe return of American citizens from Iran.
Bloomberg, citing sources, reported on September 14 that September 18 is the most likely date for the prisoner exchange. On September 15, Iranian Foreign Minister Hosein Amir Abdollahian expressed Tehran's readiness to fulfill the terms of the agreement with Washington during a phone call with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al-Thani. In response, the Qatari Prime Minister stated that the process of transferring Iranian assets to the emirate's banks would be completed the following week. According to the Tasnim news agency, the prisoner exchange will occur in Doha after Iran gains access to its assets.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Christian Ohde/Imago/TASS
Based on materials from TASS