Iran, US May Embark on Prisoner Swap: Amirabdollahian
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Announcing the achievement of an agreement on the exchange of prisoners between Iran and the US, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said the swap will be done if everything goes well.
In comments broadcast by the state TV on Sunday, Amirabdollahian said Iran and the US are exchanging messages in relation to the talks on the removal of sanctions against Tehran.
“We have reached a deal (with the US) on the issue of exchange of prisoners. If everything goes well, we will see the swap of inmates,” the top Iranian diplomat added.
He noted that Iran and the US signed a document in March 2022 in an indirect manner, as Washington is working on the last technical issues.
What matters to Iran greatly is that the baseless allegations against Tehran at the International Atomic Energy Agency must be dismissed, he noted.
Pointing to the “forceful cooperation” between Iran and the IAEA, Amirabdollahian said such interaction will have a positive effect on the negotiations on the removal of the sanctions.
“In the sanctions removal talks, the American side has lacked the courage to make the final decision so far, while Iran has proposed the ideas very transparently at the negotiation table,” he stated.
Iran and the US have conducted prisoner exchanges twice in the past, once in January 2016 when the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was implemented, and again in December 2019.