• South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun arriving in Tehran for a three-day trip. EPA
    South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun arriving in Tehran for a three-day trip. EPA
  • Iranian Senior Vice- President, Eshaq Jahangiri and South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran. EPA
    Iranian Senior Vice- President, Eshaq Jahangiri and South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran. EPA
  • Iranian Senior Vice- President, Eshaq Jahangiri and South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran. EPA
    Iranian Senior Vice- President, Eshaq Jahangiri and South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran. EPA
  • Iranian Senior Vice- President, South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, left, and Iran's Senior Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri give a joint press briefing, in Tehran, Iran. AP
    Iranian Senior Vice- President, South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, left, and Iran's Senior Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri give a joint press briefing, in Tehran, Iran. AP
  • Iranian Senior Vice- President, South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, left, and Iran's Senior Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri touch fists during their joint press briefing, in Tehran, Iran. AP Photo
    Iranian Senior Vice- President, South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, left, and Iran's Senior Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri touch fists during their joint press briefing, in Tehran, Iran. AP Photo
  • South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun holding a joint news conference with Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri after talks at Sa'dabad Palace in Tehran, Iran. EPA
    South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun holding a joint news conference with Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri after talks at Sa'dabad Palace in Tehran, Iran. EPA
  • South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun holding talks with Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri at Sa'dabad Palace in Tehran, Iran. EPA
    South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun holding talks with Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri at Sa'dabad Palace in Tehran, Iran. EPA
  • Iranian Senior Vice- President Eshaq Jahangiri talks to South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a meeting in Tehran, Iran. EPA
    Iranian Senior Vice- President Eshaq Jahangiri talks to South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun during a meeting in Tehran, Iran. EPA
  • South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun holding talks with Iran's Roads and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami in Tehran, Iran. EPA
    South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun holding talks with Iran's Roads and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami in Tehran, Iran. EPA

Iran calls on South Korea to release oil funds frozen under US sanctions


Soraya Ebrahimi
  • English
  • Arabic

Tehran urged Seoul on Sunday to release billions of dollars of Iranian funds frozen in South Korea under US sanctions over its nuclear programme, during a visit by the South Korean premier.

"We call on the Korean government to release Iran's financial resources as soon as possible," Iran's First Vice President, Eshaq Jahangiri, said alongside Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun in Tehran.

Mr Chung's visit came after Iran on Friday released a South Korean-flagged tanker it had seized three months ago, as Tehran pressed Seoul to unblock billions in frozen oil funds.

Iran accused South Korea of holding "hostage" $7 billion of its funds, but Tehran has repeatedly denied that the seizure of the vessel was linked to the issue.

Mr Jahangiri said South Korea "needs to step up co-operation with related nations including Iran" to settle the issue.

"South Korea's visit to Tehran is an expression of it's commitment to building a forward-looking relationship between the countries," he said.

Iran was a key oil supplier to South Korea until Seoul stopped its purchases after a US decision in 2018, under then-president Donald Trump, to leave the Iran nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions.

New US President Joe Biden has indicated his readiness to revive the accord.

Negotiations are under way in Vienna between Iran and the other state parties to the 2015 deal – Germany, China, France, Britain and Russia – to salvage the accord and lift sanctions on Tehran.

Mr Sye-kyun said his country is willing to support Iran to advance its dialogue with the international community to restore the nuclear deal.
Humanitarian co-operation is expected to increase and a special consultative body to administer economic co-operation will be established if the Iran nuclear deal is restored, the two officials said.

He is expected to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iranian parliamentary speaker, on Monday in Tehran as part of his visit to the country.

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Based: Cairo, Egypt

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Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder

Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)

Power: 141bhp 

Torque: 250Nm 

Price: Dh64,500

On sale: Now

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Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face

The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.

The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran. 

Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf. 

"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said. 

Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer. 

The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy. 

 

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Fuel economy, combined: 9.7L / 100km