WASHINGTON, Sept 13 (Reuters) – The White House on Wednesday defended a U.S.-Iran prisoner swap deal that has drawn criticism from Republicans, saying Iran gets no U.S. sanctions relief from the deal.
The United States on Monday waived sanctions to allow the transfer of $6 billion in Iranian funds from South Korea to Qatar, a step needed to carry out a previously announced U.S.-Iran prisoner swap, according to a U.S. document seen by Reuters.
“This it not a payment of any kind. It’s not a ransom. These aren’t U.S. taxpayer dollars. We haven’t lifted a single one of our sanctions on Iran,” John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, told reporters.
Reports indicate the pending finalization and implementation of a deal between the Islamic Republic and the U.S. government. This transaction is being called a “prisoner exchange”. But in reality, the Biden administration is making a $6 billion ransom payment to the Islamic… https://t.co/gt5vZF4WDo
— Reza Pahlavi (@PahlaviReza) September 13, 2023
(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Steve Holland; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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