UAE calls $3 billion transfer to Iran 'completely false' — no funds unfrozen or transferred
Media reported at least $10 billion in frozen Iranian assets would be released, with $3 billion already en route. The Emirates issued an immediate diplomatic denial at the foreign ministry level, stating they did not transfer or facilitate any Iranian funds.
As reported by CCTV+, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on Saturday categorically denying media reports about the UAE transferring funds to Iran, including claims of a $3 billion transfer. The statement said these claims are "completely false and unfounded," confirming that the UAE has not unfrozen, transferred or facilitated the transfer of any Iranian funds. On Friday, media citing unnamed sources reported that the UAE had agreed to unfreeze at least $10 billion for Iran, with more than $3 billion allegedly already in process.
Iranian assets worth tens of billions of dollars have remained frozen in foreign banks since 2018, when the US reimposed sanctions after withdrawing from the nuclear deal.
In recent months, various leaks have emerged about a possible unfreezing of part of those funds as part of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington. But the UAE foreign ministry has now drawn a line: no transfers took place. Why did the UAE react so quickly and harshly? Because in global finance, reputation is an asset. Even a hint of complicity in sanctions evasion can cost billions.
In a world where rumours spread faster than missiles and money freezes under sanctions faster than water in winter, a false story about three billion dollars can break diplomatic dams. The UAE is killing the rumour at its root: "No transfer, no unfreezing." But behind the dry diplomatic language lies tension. Iran is waiting for its billions, the West is watching the Emirates, and ordinary people are left wondering: whom to believe? The truth, as always, lies somewhere between an official statement and an anonymous leak. For now, three billion dollars remain a headline, not a transaction in the banking system.
