Iran is expected to regain its voting rights in the United Nations (UN) after South Korea paid $18 million in its delinquent dues on Friday.
Majid Takht-Ravanchi, Iran’s ambassador to the UN announced late Saturday that as soon as Iran’s dues are received in New York, the country’s voting rights should naturally be restored with immediate effect.
Earlier this month, the UN had suspended Iran’s voting rights at the General Assembly citing unpaid dues. According to the UN charter, a member loses the right to vote when its debts equal to or exceed the amount of dues that should have been paid over the previous two years.
Iran was South Korea’s third-largest Middle Eastern trade partner before the United States (US), led by then-President Donald Trump, unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action between Tehran and world powers in 2018. In the wake of Washington’s exit from the nuclear deal, Iran violated multiple restrictions that the deal put in place and continued to push well beyond them, which resulted in the re-imposition of a series of sanctions by Washington.
This led to Iranian assets worth around $7-9 billion being frozen in two South Korean banks. Over the past few years, Tehran has repeatedly demanded the release of its frozen funds, accusing Seoul of holding the money hostage.
Iranian FM spokesman has addressed the suspension of the IR #Iran’s right to vote in the United Nations.
— Iran Foreign Ministry 🇮🇷 (@IRIMFA_EN) January 12, 2022
Unfortunately, for the second year in a row, and due to cruel and illegal sanctions of the United States, the payments by our country have hit a roadblock. pic.twitter.com/K1tAVS5sfG
Tehran has blamed US sanctions for impeding its ability to pay its debt to the UN for the second year in a row. Last year also, Iran lost its vote over unpaid dues. Following months of negotiations, Tehran was granted an exemption and allowed to access its funds blocked by the US Treasury. It regained its voting rights in June in time for the election of new members of the Security Council.
Having its voting rights in the 193-member international body suspended once again, Iran made an “emergency request” last week, asking South Korea to help it pay its dues with the frozen funds, South Korea’s Finance Ministry said. The release of Iran’s assets was made in coordination with the US and the UN.
Seoul “on Friday completed the payment of Iran’s UN dues of about $18 million through the Iranian frozen funds in South Korea, in active cooperation with related agencies such as the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the United Nations Secretariat […] Iran’s right to vote at the General Assembly is expected to be restored immediately with the payment,” its finance ministry said in a statement.
Citing confidentiality laws, Seoul’s finance ministry has declined to disclose the amount of Iranian assets that remain frozen after the latest payment.