U.S. President Donald Trump is considering a plan to provide Iran's frozen assets to Gulf states. The idea is to distribute funds to Persian Gulf allies damaged by Iranian attacks to help their recovery.
According to Reuters on Saturday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has directed the formation of a team to assess the damage costs of Gulf allies attacked by Iran. The U.S. is considering using Iran's frozen assets for the reconstruction work.
The report came after Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said in a CNN interview that peace negotiations hinge on whether the U.S. releases $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets. The Treasury did not specify which assets it is examining. However, Reuters reported that assets other than the frozen ones could be included.
Iran reacted immediately. Iranian news agency ISNA reported that "the threat to repurpose Iranian assets could create new friction in the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran."
The same day, Iranian Parliament Deputy Speaker Ali Nikzad pointed out on social media that the U.S. position on the ceasefire and the Strait of Hormuz was contradictory. "Iran has a clear strategy on the ceasefire and the strait," he said. "Iran's nuclear bomb is the Strait of Hormuz."
Fada-Hossein Maleki, a member of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, also said that even if an agreement is reached between the two countries, it would have only a "limited" effect. "The U.S. approach of combining demands for negotiations with military action has complicated the diplomatic environment," he said. "The negotiating table is open, but Iran's willingness to advance talks is limited due to distrust."
Meanwhile, Ahmad Khatami, a member of Iran's Assembly of Experts, announced that Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded in the leg on the first day of the war. The injury was serious, with the possibility of amputation raised.
