Iran and the United States reportedly reached “an agreement on a prisoner swap in recent days.” This was said on Sunday by Tehran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian — a claim that was however, crudely denied by the U.S. which called it a “cruel lie.
This is not the first time the head of Iranian diplomacy has made similar comments about possible deals with Washington on frozen assets abroad and other issues – none of which, however, have ever materialized. Rather, some of these comments seem to be aimed at gaining domestic support to quell mass protests against Iran’s theocracy and bolster the country’s troubled currency, the rial.
The subject of the possible deal would be the release of at least three Iranian-American dual nationals currently detained in Iran, in exchange for dozens of Iranian citizens detained in the United States on charges of “deflecting U.S. sanctions” imposed on Iran.
The foreign minister went on to say that Tehran and Washington have also maintained an active exchange of messages on nuclear talks and the removal of sanctions. “It is important for Tehran to remove concerns about the unfounded allegation – about Iran enriching uranium to 84 percent. It is one of our red lines,” he added.
Reached by The Associated Press, U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price called the comments “another especially cruel lie that only adds to the suffering of their families. “We are working relentlessly to secure the release of the three wrongfully detained Americans in Iran,” Price said. “We will not stop until they are reunited with their loved ones.”
