S Korea Says in Talks with US to Resume Humanitarian Trade with Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – South Korea is in talks with the United States over Iran’s call for Seoul to resume exports of humanitarian goods to Tehran, a report said.
Yonhap news agency reported on Saturday that Tehran called in the South Korean ambassador to Iran to lodge a complaint, urging Seoul to resume humanitarian trade with the country.
"The Iranian side expressed its position that it hopes for the humanitarian trade to be resumed and is discussing the matter with us,” a Korean foreign ministry official said, according to the report.
"We are in talks with Iran and the US frequently so that the shipments of humanitarian goods like medical supplies can be resumed using the won-based transaction system," the official added.
Financial transactions between Seoul and Tehran for shipments of food and medical items became effectively impossible after Washington toughened sanctions against the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) in September, requiring third countries to provide information on trade with the Middle Eastern nation.
Officials from the foreign, finance and industry ministries in South Korea reportedly visited Washington last week and held talks with US officials over the issue, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The Iranian central bank has won-based accounts at Woori Bank and the Industrial Bank of Korea in Seoul for payments of not just oil imports but also products that are not subject to sanctions.
