Iran has confirmed that it is not engaging in direct talks with the United States and has no intentions of arranging such talks in the future. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani addressed this matter during a press conference in response to a reporter's inquiry.
"The reports suggesting a meeting between Iranian and US officials on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly are inaccurate. Iran is not involved in direct talks with the US, and there are no plans for such discussions, whether during the General Assembly or any other venue," the ISNA news agency quoted him as saying.
Kanani further clarified that discussions between the two countries have been limited to indirect exchanges, primarily focusing on topics such as prisoner exchange and the unblocking of Iranian assets.
On August 10, The New York Times reported an agreement between the US and Iran regarding a prisoner exchange. While the White House verified the agreement, it emphasized awaiting the return of American citizens from Iran before formally confirming the deal's completion. As part of this agreement, Iran is set to gain access to $6 billion of its funds frozen in South Korean bank accounts due to US sanctions.
Following its withdrawal from the nuclear deal, the US imposed sanctions on Iran, including a ban on eight major importers of Iranian oil, including South Korea, from procuring energy resources from Iran. Iran later reported that around $7 billion held by South Korea had been frozen due to US Treasury Department's request. Although South Korea retained the funds for oil payments in its banks, it was unable to transfer the money to Iran due to the ongoing US sanctions regime.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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Based on materials from TASS