Reuters: Frozen Iranian billions at heart of renewed US talks

Efforts to reach a preliminary deal between Iran and the United States have intensified, three Iranian sources and a European official told Reuters, despite strikes launched by both sides, as they discuss a mechanism over releasing frozen Iranian funds.

The sources said Iran and the United States were still exchanging messages over details of a memorandum of understanding amid the ongoing confrontation between Tehran and Washington.

According to the Iranian sources, a political understanding has already been reached, although several issues remain unresolved, including the technical mechanism for releasing tens of billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenues frozen in foreign banks.

"Iran wants $6 billion to $12 billion of its frozen funds to be released to Tehran, while Washington wants to release funds in stages for humanitarian goods and rejects returning funds to Iran outright," said one of the Iranian sources.

The sources added that, for its own survival, the clerical establishment’s priority is not a comprehensive settlement but a framework that would restore minimal breathing space by unlocking frozen assets and ending the conflict.

The Iranian sources said the focus remains on securing a limited agreement that would allow financial relief rather than a full resolution of broader political disputes.

By Vafa Guliyeva