“Korea-Iran, negotiated to purchase vaccines with 7 trillion frozen funds bound by US sanctions”… Approved by the US Treasury.

Freeze USD 7 billion in exports of Iranian crude oil to Korea… Iran asks Korea to deposit money to’Kovax facility’
US Treasury Department recognizes sanctions exception for humanitarian exchange Iran delays decision due to concerns about refreezing during currency exchange

[아시아경제 임철영 기자] Iran is in discussions with the Korean government on how to use the 7 billion dollar (approximately 7.6 trillion won) of crude oil exports tied into Korea due to US sanctions as funds to purchase a novel coronavirus (Corona 19) vaccine. This plan was recognized as a humanitarian transaction and even approved by the US Treasury Department, but it is known that the final decision was not made due to concerns of the Iranian side over the funding process.

On the 5th, an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “Iran tried to secure the Corona 19 vaccine through the COVAX facility, and the US Treasury Department and Korea have been discussing in various ways over the payment of this amount in Korean won.” I got special approval from and tried to pay for it,” he explained.

Cobax Facility is a project led by the World Health Organization (WHO) with the aim of joint purchase and distribution of vaccines, and participating countries can receive the developed vaccine by paying the price. More than 190 countries, including Korea, are participating.

The Iranian side has so far requested the Korean government to deposit the frozen crude oil export proceeds to Kovacs at a bank in Korea. Relevant banks devised a plan to transfer the funds and delivered them to Iran, but there is no answer from Iran. In order to pay for Cobax Facility, a US bank must go through a currency exchange process, but Iran is known to be concerned about this process.

Foreign Ministry officials said, “In the process of remittance, Iran is unable to make a decision because of concerns about what the US government will do with these funds.”

In addition, Iranian authorities strongly denied some analyzes on the link between detaining Korean ships and the price in won. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to contact Iranian authorities through diplomatic channels such as the Iranian Embassy in Korea and the Korean Embassy in Iran.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, “I asked if there was any intention to negotiate this time by linking the detention of the ship and the price in won, but the Iranian side replied that it was not.” The Korean government will continue to request the prompt removal of detentions for Korean ships and crew members, and will immediately dispatch a working delegation for negotiations.

Meanwhile, Choi Jong-gun, the first vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is on his way to Iran on the 10th with a schedule of 3 days and 2 nights in the situation of detaining Korean ships. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been pursuing visits to discuss the issue of Iranian funds tied to Korea.

Spokesman Choi Young-sam said through a regular briefing on the day that “there will be broad discussions on issues of common interest between the two countries,” and “there will be an exchange of opinions on the recent ship detention issue.”

Reporter Lim Cheol-young [email protected]