Iran and South Korea Discuss Locked Assets

Iran and South Korea have held working-level consultations to discuss ways to resolve yearslong disputes over Tehran's assets frozen under US sanctions, Seoul's foreign ministry said Wednesday.
Iranian bankers and officials from the state-run oil company and the petroleum ministry were in Seoul to meet government and company officials to talk about pending economic issues as multilateral talks in Vienna to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal enter the final stretch, Yonhap News Agency reported.
Bilateral relations remain frayed over $7 billion in Iranian funds locked in two Korean banks under US sanctions, which were imposed after former president Donald Trump in 2018 withdrew from the landmark deal.
During the two-day meetings from Tuesday, the two sides discussed detailed payment options and the possibility of resuming oil trade in preparation for potential US sanctions relief.
Iran, which sits on the world's fourth-largest oil reserves, had been a key oil supplier to South Korea, importing its goods such as industrial equipment, household appliances and vehicle parts.
The release of the frozen assets requires approval from the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Tehran, however, says that the Korean government has to unfreeze the locked money, regardless of the outcome of the talks in Vienna, as Iranian officials believe unilateral US sanctions cannot justify Seoul’s delays in repayment of its debts.
South Korea's hesitation in repaying its debts has intensified the negative impact of unilateral sanctions on two-way trade. According to the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran, the figure plunged from $8 billion in the fiscal year to March 2018 to $460 million during the first three quarters of the current Iranian year.