INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
the problem of Iranian funds frozen in the country, according to Seoul's foreign ministry.During the phone call, First Vice Foreign
Minister Cho Hyun-dong and his Iranian counterpart and chief nuclear negotiator, Ali Bagheri-Kani, discussed the latest developments in
negotiations aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, as well as other outstanding
bilateral issues, according to the ministry.Bilateral relations are still strained as a result of US$7 billion in Iranian cash held in two
Korean banks under United States sanctions, which were re-imposed when then-United States President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear
as soon as possible, to which Cho responded that the Seoul government will make steps to release the cash and resume oil imports if the
Iranian nuclear agreement is restored, according to the ministry.Officials in Seoul have stated that the fate of the frozen funds is
Cho Hyun-dong, the First Vice Foreign Minister of (South) Korea, I emphasized that the government/people of Iran expect the new Korean
government to immediately release the foreign exchange resources of Iran in Korean banks in order to provide a basis for improving the
relations between the two countries
