Tehran conditioning talks with US on unfreezing of billions of dollars in frozen assets, beginning with $12 billion held by Qatar.By World Israel News StaffIran is demanding immediate access to $12 billion in frozen assets held in Qatar before moving ahead with an initial understanding with the United States, Iran International reported on Sunday, citing an informed source with direct knowledge of the negotiations.The demand has emerged as one of the main remaining obstacles to a possible memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran, according to the report.The source said Iran is insisting that the money be released during the first stage of the diplomatic process and that Tehran receive guaranteed, practical access to the funds before any preliminary agreement can advance.The $12 billion held in Qatar is only the first tranche Iran is seeking, the source said.Tehran’s broader position is that all Iranian assets frozen around the world must be released as part of any eventual comprehensive deal.Iranian state-linked media also reported Sunday that disagreements with Washington over a potential memorandum remained unresolved.Tasnim News, which is linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said one or two clauses were still under dispute. It reported that Tehran was demanding the release of at least part of its frozen assets at the opening stage of any memorandum and was insisting that the funds be genuinely accessible.According to Tasnim, the US has sought in recent weeks to tie the release of Iranian assets to a final nuclear agreement rather than an initial understanding.Iran wants some money released at the start of an MOU and a mechanism created for releasing the rest as negotiations continue, the report said.Later on Sunday, Tasnim said US obstruction over some clauses, including the release of blocked Iranian funds, was continuing and warned that the agreement could still collapse.The dispute highlights the central role sanctions relief and frozen assets are playing in the negotiations.For Tehran, access to money held abroad is a test of whether Washington is prepared to offer concrete economic benefits at the beginning of the process. For the US, delaying or conditioning the funds gives the administration leverage as it seeks limits on Iran’s nuclear program.The funds in Qatar are tied to Iranian oil sales to South Korea. Under a 2023 prisoner swap, $6 billion in Iranian money was moved to Qatari accounts, but access remained restricted to humanitarian purchases under US oversight.Reuters reported in April that Washington had agreed to release $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets held in Qatar and other banks.Iran’s latest demand, according to Iran International, goes further by seeking immediate access to $12 billion as a precondition for the first diplomatic step.The reported dispute comes as the two sides try to shape a broader roadmap for talks over Iran’s nuclear program. Tehran says it wants sanctions relief and access to its money. Washington says any agreement must prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.For now, the asset dispute appears to be one of the final tests of whether the two sides can move from indirect bargaining to an initial written understanding.The post Iran demands US give it $12 billion in frozen assets held by Qatar appeared first on World Israel News.