Iran farmer claims deepen dispute over frozen assets in fragile US deal
A row over food, sanctions and unfrozen money has complicated America's tentative interim agreement with Tehran, with Washington and Iran clashing over how released assets should be spent.
Helena Forsythe
Writer ·
A fresh dispute over food, sanctions and frozen money has complicated the United States' tentative interim agreement with Iran. President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance have framed the arrangement as a possible boost for American farmers, suggesting that released Iranian assets could be used to buy US corn, wheat and soybeans.
Tehran rejects that interpretation. Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said any agricultural purchases would be based on price and quality, while Iran's ambassador in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, insisted Tehran alone would decide how to use its own assets.
Background
The interim deal is already politically sensitive. The memorandum is intended to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, permit Iranian oil sales during a 60-day negotiating period and unfreeze restricted assets while talks continue.
Critics argue major questions remain unresolved over nuclear limits, missiles and Iranian support for armed groups in the region. The latest row turns what was billed as a peace framework into an economic argument as well as a security test.
What happens next
Sanctions specialists told the Associated Press that Washington may have tools to steer escrowed funds towards US goods, but that enforcement would be legally and diplomatically difficult. With both sides offering competing accounts of what the deal entails, the dispute risks straining a fragile agreement before negotiations have properly begun.
Source: This summary is based on reporting by Associated Press. The NE Times aggregates and rewrites news for readability; please refer to the original for the full report.
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