IRGC Retrieves Hundreds of Millions of Dollars from Abroad

CEO of Chadormalu Ali Taherzadeh speaks to Director of Bank Sepah Ayatollah Ebrahimi. (Telegram)
CEO of Chadormalu Ali Taherzadeh speaks to Director of Bank Sepah Ayatollah Ebrahimi. (Telegram)
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IRGC Retrieves Hundreds of Millions of Dollars from Abroad

CEO of Chadormalu Ali Taherzadeh speaks to Director of Bank Sepah Ayatollah Ebrahimi. (Telegram)
CEO of Chadormalu Ali Taherzadeh speaks to Director of Bank Sepah Ayatollah Ebrahimi. (Telegram)

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence unit announced it retrieved $560 million in revenues from frozen mining sector exports abroad.

The KhabarOnline news agency reported that the IRGC's public relations returned over 92 percent of the financial pledges to the Chadormalu Mining and Industrial Company in Yazd province, equivalent to $560 million.

The statement said that the intelligence service was tasked with returning the foreign currency resulting from Chadormalu's exports, noting that the operation was carried out by the "Unkinw Soldiers of Imam Zaman" in Yazd.

The statement did not disclose the country from which the intelligence services transferred the money or the date of the operation.

The Tehran Stock Exchange data, dating back to 2016, indicate that Chadormalu's resources amount to $2 billion annually.

Bank Sepah, which is linked to the military, and the National Steel Company are among the major investors in the group.

Last January, the mining and mineral industries' resources exceeded $9 billion.

The announcement would expose Chadormalu, one of the largest iron companies in the country, to the risk of US sanctions, given the sanctions facing the IRGC.

It could also deprive Iranian banks of financial transfers and use the Swift network after the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which combats money laundry, said Iran would stay on the blacklist.

Iran is struggling to return tens of billions of its frozen assets while facing harsh US sanctions after former President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal.

Recently, the authorities have tried to curb a record decline in the exchange rate of the Iranian riyal against foreign currencies, especially the US dollar.

On March 10, a member of the Iranian-Iraqi Chamber of Commerce, Hamid Hosseini, said Iraq would return $500 million of Iranian funds frozen in its banks. He predicted that Iran's exports would exceed $9 billion annually.

Iran has frozen assets in Iraq from the proceeds of selling gas and electricity.

Hosseini said that Iraq's debts to Iran exceeded $10 billion and that it was recently decided to pay off some debts.

Information about frozen Iranian assets abroad is conflicting, and some unofficial estimates indicate that they range between $100 billion and $120 billion.

Iran is currently demanding the return of frozen assets from its oil sales in Japan and South Korea.

Tehran's holdings in South Korea are estimated at $7 billion, $1.6 billion in Japan, and $1.5 billion in Luxembourg. Last December, Iranian newspapers reported that Iran's frozen assets in China amounted to $30 billion.



Netanyahu and Trump to Talk Tariffs, Iran and Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes to Washington direct from a visit to Hungary. Attila KISBENEDEK / AFP
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes to Washington direct from a visit to Hungary. Attila KISBENEDEK / AFP
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Netanyahu and Trump to Talk Tariffs, Iran and Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes to Washington direct from a visit to Hungary. Attila KISBENEDEK / AFP
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes to Washington direct from a visit to Hungary. Attila KISBENEDEK / AFP

Talks on Monday between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump are expected to be dominated by Washington's shock tariffs on Israel and escalating tensions with Iran.

Netanyahu becomes the first foreign leader to meet with Trump in the US capital since the president unveiled sweeping levies on multiple countries in his "Liberation Day" announcement on Wednesday.

Arriving in Washington direct from a visit to Hungary, Netanyahu's chief objective will be to persuade Trump to reverse the decision, or at the very least to reduce the 17 percent levy set to be imposed on Israeli imports before it takes effect.

Before leaving Budapest, Netanyahu said his discussions would include a range of issues, including "the tariff regime that has also been imposed on Israel".

"I'm the first international leader, the first foreign leader who will meet with President Trump on a matter so crucial to Israel's economy," he said in a statement.

"I believe this reflects the special personal relationship and the unique bond between the United States and Israel, which is so vital at this time."

Analysts said Netanyahu will seek to secure an exemption from the tariffs for Israel.

"The urgency (of the visit) makes sense in terms of stopping it before it gets institutionalized," said Jonathan Rynhold, head of political studies at Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv.

Such an exemption would not only benefit Trump's closest Middle East ally but also "please Republicans in Congress, whose voters care about Israel, but are unwilling to confront Trump on this at this point," he said.

Israel had attempted to avoid the new levy by moving preemptively a day before Trump's announcement and lifting all remaining duties on the one percent of American goods still affected by them.

But Trump still went ahead with his new policy, saying the United States had a significant trade deficit with Israel, a top beneficiary of US military aid.

Gaza truce, hostages

The Israeli leader's US trip is "also a way for Netanyahu to play the game and show Trump that Israel is going along with him," said Yannay Spitzer, a professor of economics at Hebrew University.

"I would not be surprised if there is an announcement of some concession for Israel... and this will be an example for other countries."

Netanyahu will also discuss the war in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli hostages still held in the Palestinian territory, and the growing "threat from Iran", his office said.

Israel resumed air strikes on Gaza on March 18, ending nearly two months of ceasefire with Hamas that had been brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar.

Efforts to restore the truce have since failed, with more than 1,330 people killed in renewed Israeli air and ground operations, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-controlled territory.

Palestinian Hamas group there still hold 58 hostages, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.

On Iran, Trump has been pressing for "direct talks" with Tehran on a new deal to curb its nuclear program.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday rejected the idea of direct negotiations with the United States as "meaningless".

There has been widespread speculation that Israel, possibly with US help, might attack Iranian facilities if no agreement is reached.