Iranian Regime in Dire Straits Puts Frozen Billions at Center of US Negotiations

06/06/2026

Iranian Regime in Dire Straits Puts Frozen Billions at Center of US Negotiations

TEHRAN, Jun 6: A senior Iranian official has said that the release of frozen Iranian assets has become a key sticking point in negotiations between Tehran and Washington aimed at easing tensions and moving toward a broader agreement.

Iran has faced extensive sanctions and asset freezes imposed by the United States and other Western countries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the US-backed Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

While no official total has been confirmed, media reports estimate that Iran’s frozen assets abroad range between $100 billion and $123 billion.

In an interview broadcast on Friday, Mohsen Rezaei, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader, said the negotiations were stalling over the issue of asset release.

“If he (Trump) wants to reach an agreement with Iran, this $24 billion is a test of trust that Iran wants to have with Trump,” Rezaei told CNN, according to an English translation of his remarks provided by the channel. He added that “this is a test that America must pass and the path will be opened,” stressing that “this is our own money, not America’s money.”

The remarks highlight ongoing financial and political obstacles in the talks, with frozen assets emerging as a central demand from Tehran in any potential diplomatic breakthrough.