1st Installment Of Iranˈs $2.8m Frozen Assets To Be Released

Tehran, Aug 2, IRNA – According to recent Vienna 6 nuclear agreement between Iran and Sextet in which 6 month Geneva Joint Plan of Action was extended for 4 more months 2.8 million dollars of Iranˈs blocked oil sale money will be released in 6 installments, beginning today. Towards the end of the Vienna 6 nuclear negations between Iran and the Sextet when it was made clear that within the period till July 20 deadline for the Geneva Joint Plan of Action (JPA) the so-called comprehensive agreement between the two sides could not be signed the Islamic Republic of Iran and the six world powers decided to implement the second stage of the JPA within a new four month extension period. The new ˈnon-paperˈ document was achieved following many rounds of intensive, tough talks in one page and it was stressed that it was unofficial. The two sides have in this new document agreed on the method of continuing the negotiations and on continuing implementing the JPA. The United States that had initially accepted the commitment to release 4.2 billion dollars of Iranˈs blocked monetary assts in return for Iranˈs annihilation of its stockpile of 20% enriched uranium and oxidation of its rest, will this time release another 2.8 billion dollars within this new four month period. This amount will be released in four $500 million and two $400 million installments within an almost once every three weeks period as follows: First installment: $500 million on August, 1, 2014 Second installment: $500 million on August, 25, 2014 Third installment: $400 million on September, 17, 2014 Fourth installment: $500 million on October, 10, 2014 Fifth installment: $500 million on November, 3, 2014 Sixth installment: $400 million on November, 23, 2014 The United States has in this ˈdescriptive documentˈ also agreed to make possible on time payment of these installments so that the occurrence of difficulties and delayed that took place in case of the payments within the first six months will not happen again. In addition, both the European countries and the United States have agreed to effectively lift the insurance sanctions and to consider conditions that since the new four month extension is a short period, if the insurance companies will be urge to pay compensations after the expiry of that period those payments will be made properly even after the end of those four months. This commitment on the part of the US insurance companies will provide greater assurance in case of the insurances for the oil ocean liners that carry Iranian oil to various destinations. In this new descriptive document the Islamic Republic of Iran, too, has announced that it will continue its pre-scheduled plan for provision of fuel for the Tehran Research Reactor (TRR) and precisely speaking turn 25 kilograms of its 25% uranium oxide into fuel plates to be used in the TTR. Iran will also according to the previous program, turn the 2% residues of its incomplete enrichment processes into hexafluoride of natural uranium to be prepared for the re-enrichment process. Two clear ambiguities in implementation of the GPA regarding providing access for the IAEA inspectors to the workshops where Iranˈs nuclear facilitiesˈ spare parts and new generations of centrifuges are manufactured will be made possible in a way that no new commitment for the Islamic Republic beyond the JPA, or the NPT will be accepted. South Korea, on the other side, has been the second Asian country next o Japan to release the second installment of Iranˈs blocked oil sale money. The first such payment was made by the Central Bank of Japan on February 3 through the Central Bank of Switzerland and its amount was the Swiss Franc equivalent of US $500, which was deposited in the account of the Central Bank of Iran. India, South Korea and Japan have been the first countries to release the blocked Iranian oil sale money and deposit it in the Iranian Central Bankˈs account, some of which were transferred through some Arab countriesˈ banks, such as Oman. Although some of those installments were released with one to a few daysˈ delays, but they were eventually deposited in the account of the Central Bank of Iran before July 21, when the 8th installment of the Iranian oil sale money was deposited. The Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham confirmed the depositing of that installment on July 22 in her Wednesday weekly news briefing. Also on July 23 the Reuters announced that India had deported the last installment in accordance with the Geneva Joint Plan of Action amounting to $550 in Iranˈs account. That last payment was made following the publication of and IAEA report on Iranˈs full commitment to its JPA requirements. Thus, Iran received $4.3 million of its blocked oil sale money within six months after the signing of the Geneva JPA./end