Iran International
Access to frozen assets has emerged as one of Tehran's key demands in negotiations with Washington, with Iranian officials seeking the release of at least part of the tens of billions of dollars held abroad.
According to recent media reports, negotiators are discussing a package worth roughly $12 billion that could become available if a preliminary agreement with the United States is reached.
The issue matters because even partial access to blocked funds could affect Iran's currency market, imports, government finances and broader economy.
Iranian officials estimate that more than $100 billion in assets remain inaccessible because of sanctions, banking restrictions and legal disputes that have accumulated over decades. Not all of that money would necessarily become available even in the event of an agreement, as some assets remain tied up in court cases and other restrictions unrelated to sanctions.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf recently traveled to Qatar, where discussions reportedly touched on the release of frozen Iranian funds.
Saeed Ajorlou, a member of the media team accompanying Iran's negotiating delegation, said in a televised interview on June 2 that the talks had been successful. He stated that once a framework agreement receives final approval, a portion of Iran's blocked assets should become available to the Central Bank of Iran in a manner that could not easily be reversed.
He also indicated that Tehran is seeking guarantees that access to the funds will continue and has linked the release of assets to the implementation of any future agreement.
Why the funds matter
A large share of Iran's blocked assets consists of oil revenues accumulated in foreign banks after the United States withdrew from the 2015 nuclear agreement in 2018 and reimposed sweeping sanctions.
Secondary sanctions made it difficult for countries purchasing Iranian oil to transfer payments directly to Tehran, causing substantial sums to accumulate in overseas accounts.
Economists say that even partial access to these resources could provide a significant boost to Iran's economy.
One immediate effect would be an increase in the Central Bank's foreign currency reserves, strengthening its ability to manage exchange-rate volatility. Additional funds could also be used to finance infrastructure projects, pay government obligations and support imports of essential goods, industrial equipment, raw materials and technology needed by domestic industries.
South Korea
South Korea once held one of the largest pools of frozen Iranian funds.
Roughly $6 billion in oil revenues accumulated in two South Korean banks before being transferred to accounts in Qatar in 2023 as part of a prisoner-exchange agreement between Tehran and Washington.
Although Iranian officials initially described the funds as released, access has remained subject to significant restrictions and the money has largely remained beyond Tehran's direct control.
Iraq
Iraq represents another major source of Iranian claims.
Much of the money stems from Iraqi purchases of Iranian natural gas and electricity. While neither side has publicly confirmed an exact figure, Iranian officials have repeatedly said that outstanding payments amount to several billion dollars.
Some of these funds have already been used for humanitarian purchases under arrangements approved by the United States. Estimates suggest that Iran could eventually gain access to between $10 billion and $12 billion held in Iraq if restrictions are eased.
China, India and Japan
China and India present a more complicated picture.
Iranian officials often avoid describing funds held in those countries as formally frozen, arguing that mechanisms exist to use at least part of the money for trade and imports.
Nevertheless, transactions remain difficult because banks and intermediaries facilitating such transfers risk exposure to US sanctions.
Iranian estimates place holdings in China in the tens of billions of dollars, while funds in India are believed to total roughly $7 billion.
Japan also holds Iranian funds linked to oil sales. Estimates generally range from $1.5 billion to $3 billion, although the exact amount remains unclear. Japanese authorities have occasionally allowed limited payments for humanitarian imports and Iran's obligations to international organizations, but most of the money remains inaccessible.
Europe
In Europe, Iranian assets are spread across multiple countries and financial institutions. Their status is shaped not only by sanctions but also by legal disputes, court rulings and anti-money-laundering regulations.
Total Iranian assets affected by these issues are estimated at anywhere from several billion dollars to as much as $20 billion.
One of the most prominent disputes involves approximately $1.6 billion to $2 billion connected to accounts belonging to Iran's central bank in Luxembourg. These assets have been tied up in litigation involving efforts by holders of US court judgments to obtain compensation related to terrorism cases.
While the exact amount of Iranian assets that could ultimately be released remains uncertain, access even to a fraction of these funds could strengthen Iran's foreign-exchange reserves, ease pressure on imports and provide the government with a significant financial cushion.
For that reason, frozen assets have become one of the most important economic components of the ongoing negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
Tehran’s unveiling of a towering statue depicting the Roman Emperor Valerian kneeling before pre-Islamic Persian King Shapur I has renewed criticism of the Islamic Republic’s appeal to nationalist sentiment following the June war with Israel.
For over forty years, the theocracy purged ancient Persian history from schoolbooks, replacing it with post-Islamic narratives. But after the 12-day conflict with Israel, officials have turned to the distant pre-Islamic past to rally a divided society.
From murals of ancient kings and soldiers to patriotic songs added to Shi’ite mourning ceremonies performed before Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Tehran now embraces imagery once deemed heretical by its own revolutionary ethos.
'Kneel before Iran' campaign
Tehran’s Revolution (Enghelab) Square was the scene of an unusual spectacle on Friday as officials unveiled a massive bronze statue depicting Roman Emperor Valerian kneeling in submission before Sassanid King Shapur I, commemorating Iran’s victory at the Battle of Edessa (260 AD).
The event was held under the slogan “Kneel before Iran,” part of what authorities describe as a campaign to project “national unity and historical pride” following the June war with Israel.
Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani, a staunch ultraconservative, said on X: “Enmity with Great Iran can only end in kneeling before this historic nation.”
Municipal official Davood Goodarzi said the installation would be accompanied by visual displays depicting “other victories of Iranians over foreign aggressors,” including the defeat of British forces by local commander Rais-Ali Delvari, Mirza Kuchak Khan’s resistance against Russian troops, and Surena’s triumph over Rome at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BCE.
The goal, Goodarzi said, is “strengthening concepts such as national dignity, social unity, and Iranian identity.”
The statue, he said, would remain temporarily at Revolution Square before being moved to a city gateway “where it will stand as the first emblem of Iran before diplomats and foreign visitors.”
Unveiled women were allowed to attend the unveiling ceremony—an uncommon scene at events organized by Tehran’s ultra-hardline municipality.
The turn to the pre-Islamic past
The sharp reversal also recalls remarks once made by Khamenei. In a 2011 speech, he asserted that “all the great military victories of this nation came after Islam,” dismissing pre-Islamic accounts as “things that are not documented.”
In 1987, he had said that prophets triumphed over kings such as Cyrus and that “nothing remains of these monarchs in history but names remembered with derision.”
Nevertheless, pro-government social media accounts have now gone so far as to circulate posters equating Khamenei himself with Shapur, showing him standing with a staff as Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump kneel before him. The caption reads: “You will kneel before Iran.”
'Hypocrisy'
Pro-government figures have hailed the move as a patriotic success. Conservative political reporter Hossein Saremi posted: “Today’s grand Iranian gathering showed that people and the state share one essence: Iran itself. Nothing can take our homeland away.”
Others, however, called the spectacle “hypocrisy.” Journalist Gholamhossein Pashaei wrote on X: “Every year you close Pasargadae to stop people from celebrating Cyrus Day, yet you unveil Shapur’s statue in Enghelab Square with drums and fireworks during Fatimiyya (mourning period)!”
Dissident commentator Hamid Asafi called the ceremony “a perfect snapshot of the Islamic Republic’s contradictions.”
On Telegram he wrote: “A week ago they closed Cyrus’s tomb out of fear of the crowds, and now they glorify Shapur in the same breath. The Islamic Republic fears living history but poses for selfies with its corpse.”
He added: “They know people no longer respond to rosaries and sermons. That’s why they’ve brought history back to the stage—in a controlled costume. If they can’t erase the past, they’ll try to own it.”
The irony deepened as UNESCO formally recognized Cyrus’s Charter as one of the earliest human-rights documents.
President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on X: “Iran, the cradle of dialogue, justice, and coexistence, can still inspire peace today.”
Users swiftly replied, questioning how such pride could coexist with a government that blocks access to Cyrus’s tomb each year to those wishing to visit it on his birthday.