Iran: No Trust in US, Frozen Assets Must Be Released First

Iran harbors no goodwill toward the United States and approaches all ongoing negotiations through a lens of deep and entrenched mistrust, an informed source told Iran’s Tasnim News Agency on Sunday, warning that even if a preliminary understanding is reached, Tehran will not place any reliance on Washington’s ability or willingness to honor its commitments.

“Iran has no goodwill toward America, and the exchange of messages through the Pakistani mediator is constantly conducted with mistrust of the US government,” the source stated, adding that no final understanding has been achieved so far and that disagreements over specific clauses remain unresolved.

The source was unequivocal that any preliminary understanding would not signal a change in Iran’s fundamental view of the United States. Tehran intends to closely monitor American conduct throughout the entire post-agreement period, and if Washington were to breach its commitments at that stage, Iran would retain full leverage to respond accordingly. The source pointed to America’s deeply troubled track record in past negotiations as the primary factor reinforcing and entrenching Tehran’s mistrust.

On the question of frozen assets, Tasnim flatly rejected a report in Israeli media claiming that US officials had stated Iran would receive no relief on frozen assets until it began transferring its enriched uranium stockpiles. According to Tasnim’s sources, this claim is entirely false. Iran has made absolutely clear that it refuses to link the release of its frozen assets to any nuclear material issues whatsoever.

Tehran’s position is that a portion of its frozen assets must be released immediately upon any announcement of a preliminary understanding, and must be fully and unconditionally accessible to Iran. The source recalled the bitter experience of previous asset releases that were effectively undermined through deliberate American delays, stressing that such a scenario must not be allowed to repeat itself. The report further clarified that Iran has made no commitments regarding the specifics of the nuclear issue at this stage, and that any initial understanding must focus exclusively on ending the war. The release of frozen assets in the first step carries no connection to nuclear material matters. If this red line is crossed and assets are not released, Tehran has made clear there will be no agreement.

The remarks come as US President Donald Trump posted on social media that he had instructed his negotiating team not to rush toward a deal, asserting that time is on Washington’s side. Trump also confirmed that the naval blockade of Iranian ports would remain fully in place until an agreement is reached, certified, and signed.

Pakistan, which successfully mediated historic face-to-face negotiations between US and Iranian delegations in April, expressed hope of hosting another round of talks very soon, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signaling Islamabad’s continued commitment to the mediation process. The conflict originated when the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, prompting Tehran to respond with 100 waves of retaliatory strikes under what it called Operation True Promise 4. A fragile ceasefire has been in effect since early April, though the US naval blockade of Iranian ports remains fully operational.