Iran: No obligation to buy US farm goods under agreements

Iran is not obligated to purchase agricultural products from the United States under existing agreements, the country’s Central Bank governor said Monday. Speaking to Tasnim News Agency, Abdolnaser Hemmati said: “Based on the signed memorandums, there is no obligation to buy agricultural inputs from the United States.” He said the mechanism for using the “first $6 billion” in frozen Iranian assets was based on a 2023 agreement covering essential goods and medicine.

Dispute over fund usage

Hemmati added that Iran could buy American agricultural products if their prices and quality were more favourable than those offered by other countries. He also said Iran imports billions of dollars’ worth of essential goods and medicine annually, and that Tehran’s priority is access to its own foreign currency reserves. Additional frozen funds would not necessarily be limited to purchases of essential goods and could also be used to buy other non‑sanctioned products.

Trump’s claim

The remarks came after President Trump claimed that any Iranian funds unfrozen under a future agreement would be used for food purchases from the United States. “All that money’s coming back in the form of purchases of food which they desperately need. They have 91 million people, they can’t feed them,” Trump told reporters. For Türkiye, which maintains trade relations with both Iran and the US, the dispute highlights remaining tensions over the implementation of the Iran‑US memorandum. Ankara has called for a swift and transparent resolution to ensure the deal’s success.