The US Treasury is actively exploring a plan to redirect frozen Iranian assets toward Gulf state allies as compensation for war-related damages.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has directed his staff to obtain damage cost estimates from affected Gulf nations, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman. The goal: quantify the infrastructure destruction linked to Iranian military operations and figure out how much of Iran’s frozen wealth can be channeled into reconstruction.
The money at stake
Total frozen Iranian assets worldwide are estimated between $100B and $120B. Of that total, approximately $24B in frozen funds has become the focal point of US-Iran negotiations. Tehran has made the release of those funds a precondition for any broader agreement.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister rejected the reparations proposal on June 7, asserting that Iranian assets should not serve as compensation for US allies.
