On the morning of the 9th, Deputy Consul Kim Jae-woo, the Korean Embassy in Iran, is waving to the Korean Chemi, which departs from Rajai Port near Bandar Abbas, Iran. Provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
On the 9th, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard lifted the detention of the Korean ship’Korea Chemie’ and released the Korean captain. It has been 95 days since the arrest on January 4th. The evidence for environmental pollution, which was initially heard as a reason, has not been presented. In the end, after Iran seized our ship as a hostage to resolve the frozen fund problem, analysis comes out as to whether it was released when negotiations to restore the nuclear agreement (JCPOA, Comprehensive Joint Action Plan) with the United States, which held the key, began in earnest.
Departure of Korea Chemie…’Environmental Pollution’ Judicial Procedures End
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Korean chemical carrier Korea Chemi, which was detained in the southern Iranian port of Rajhai, departed for the UAE Fujairah port around 10:20 on the same day. A total of 13 people are on board, including a Korean captain and a crew member who was replaced for ship management, of which 5 are Korean nationals. It is said that the consul of the Korean Embassy in Iran checked the health of the crew until just before leaving. As soon as the ship arrives at Fujairah Port, it is known that it will conduct a full inspection and set future schedules, including returning home.
On February 2, when Iran released all crew members, the detention of the captain and the ship was not lifted. We heard the reason that the judicial authority’s action on the alleged environmental pollution has not been completed. However, the judicial proceedings that Iran had put under cover did not proceed. An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “The domestic legal proceedings on Iran have been ended due to an agreement between the ship and the Iranian Port Authority.”
Was the effort to resolve the government’s frozen funds effective?
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes that the Iranian government has turned its mind to the South Korean government’s efforts to resolve the frozen fund problem. Currently, about 7 billion dollars (about 7.6 trillion won) of crude oil exports under the name of the Iranian Central Bank, which was frozen due to US sanctions against Iran, are deposited in domestic banks. This is the money tied up when former U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally declared withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 and stepped into independent sanctions. There were many observations that Iran’s wife also captured our ship in an effort to return the frozen funds in the first place.
To solve this problem, the Korean government dispatched a working delegation to the field, and Choi Jong-Geon, the first vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also held face-to-face discussions with officials from the Iranian government. High-level communication, including calls from the foreign ministers of the two countries, the embassy channel, and the National Assembly diplomatic channel were also operated. In this process, the use of the Swiss-type humanitarian trade channel (SHTA) has been discussed with the United States, and Iran’s UN contribution to Iran using frozen funds has been paid for about $16 million (approximately 18 billion won), increasing humanitarian aid from domestic companies to Iran. Progress has been made in the room of the back. In this regard, Prime Minister Jeong Sye-gyun will visit Iran on a two-night and three-day schedule starting on the 11th to discuss issues and cooperation between the two countries.
JCPOA negotiations seem to have taken on the gains and losses of detention
Most of all, there are many views that Iran recently started negotiations with the parties to restore the JCPOA. This is because the judgment that detaining Korean ships, which are US allies for a long period of time, could adversely affect the atmosphere of dialogue.
An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “If the JCPOA progresses, we have discussed with the relevant countries that it can play a positive role in the frozen fund issue.” Said.
Kang Yoobin reporter [email protected]
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