Blinken and Raab Meeting; Denial of Prisoner Exchange with Iran for Money
The foreign ministers of the United States and Britain, rejecting any agreement with Iran for prisoner exchange in return for money, announced diplomatic efforts in this regard. Dominic Raab described discussions about Nazanin Zaghari’s freedom in exchange for London’s debt payment to Tehran as inaccurate.
Anthony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State, and Dominic Raab, his British counterpart, while emphasizing diplomatic efforts to secure the freedom of their citizens in Iran, denied published reports claiming an agreement had been reached with Tehran for prisoner exchange in return for money.
The two held a press conference after meeting on the sidelines of the “G7” summit. Dominic Raab described reports regarding Nazanin Zaghari’s release in exchange for payment of Britain’s old debt to Tehran as “inaccurate.”
Anthony Blinken also emphasized that returning detained citizens home is America’s top priority and added: “We must take a strong stance against arbitrary detention of our citizens that is carried out for political motives.”
Britain’s Foreign Secretary similarly told reporters in comparable remarks: “The Boris Johnson government is engaged in intensive efforts to secure the release of detained citizens in Iran.”
Dominic Raab considered the release of prisoners arbitrarily and illegally detained in Iran to be Iran’s responsibility.
Raab previously stated that Iran’s treatment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe constitutes torture.
Boris Johnson, Britain’s Prime Minister, emphasized on Monday evening that the release of Ms. Zaghari and Britain’s decades-old debt to Iran are two separate matters, but London will do everything it can to secure the freedom of this dual-nationality prisoner.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting and the “Al-Mayadeen” newspaper affiliated with Hezbollah in Lebanon reported on Sunday (May 2) that Tehran and London had agreed in their negotiations on the release of Ms. Zaghari in exchange for a 400 million pound claim that Iran holds against Britain.
Hejjat Kermani, Ms. Zaghari’s lawyer, also announced that he is unaware of any such matter and has not received any notification regarding his client’s release.
Source: DW
