UAE ‘Flatly Rejects’ Reports of $3bn Transfer to Iran

DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has “categorically denied” media reports claiming that it would transfer $3 billion to Iran, according to a statement from the foreign ministry.

Earlier, it was reported that the United Arab Emirates has agreed to unlock billions of dollars for Iran, four sources said, in a tactical shift after weeks of Iranian attacks on the wealthy Gulf Arab state during the US-Israeli war with the Islamic Republic.

The ministry has “affirmed that these allegations are entirely false and unfounded, stressing that no frozen Iranian funds have been released, transferred, or facilitated through the UAE”.

It has also called on media outlets to “exercise accuracy, rely on official sources, and refrain from publishing or circulating unverified information and unfounded allegations”.

The international news agency reported that the UAE had agreed to release a total of $10 billion, more than $3 billion of which had already been delivered, claiming that two other sources with knowledge of the arrangement put the total funds involved at $20 billion, alleging that the move had been agreed in return for a halt to Iranian attacks on ⁠the UAE. One of the sources with knowledge of the arrangement also said a first tranche of $3 billion had already been made available.