By Haifa Chairunisa
United States President Donald Trump is prepared to unfreeze Iranian assets currently held in Qatar, according to sources cited by Reuters.
An Iranian government source described the potential move as a signal of Washington’s “seriousness” in ongoing discussions in Islamabad, which are focused on safeguarding the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a vital corridor for global oil and gas shipments.
“The release of these funds is closely tied to efforts to guarantee secure navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, which is expected to be a central issue in the talks,” Reuters reported on Saturday (April 11, 2026).
While Reuters did not initially confirm the value of the assets, a second Iranian source said the United States has approved the release of approximately $6 billion in funds that had been frozen and held in Qatar.
There has been no official confirmation from Washington regarding the decision, and Qatar’s Foreign Ministry has yet to respond to requests for comment.
The funds were first frozen in 2018 under US sanctions but were slated for release in 2023 as part of a prisoner exchange agreement between the United States and Iran. However, the administration of Joe Biden halted the process again following the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, an Iran-backed group based in Gaza.
At the time, US officials stressed that Iran would not gain access to the funds and reaffirmed Washington’s authority to maintain restrictions on Iranian financial assets.
The $6 billion originated from Iranian oil sales to South Korea and had been held in South Korean banks after Trump reinstated sanctions on Tehran in 2018, effectively abandoning the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers.
As part of a US-Iran prisoner swap brokered by Doha in September 2023, the funds were transferred to an account in Qatar. The agreement included the release of five American detainees in Iran in exchange for five Iranian nationals held in the United States, along with the partial unfreezing of assets.
US officials previously emphasized that the funds were strictly designated for humanitarian purposes, including the purchase of food, medicine, medical supplies, and agricultural goods, under oversight from the US Treasury Department.
Original article
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