President Donald Trump told farmers on Thursday that unfrozen Iranian funds will be spent on American wheat, soybeans and corn. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent earlier said the department would oversee how the money is used. Iranian officials have previously insisted Tehran is obligated to use the released funds for US goods only.
President Donald Trump on Thursday told a gathering of American farmers in the Midwest that unfrozen Iranian assets will be used to purchase U.S. agricultural products, including wheat, soybeans, and corn. "We're going to be taking some of their money, and we'll spend it," Trump said, according to reports. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent earlier told CNBC's Squawk Box that the Treasury Department would oversee how the funds are spent — adding a layer of administrative detail to a pledge Trump has now repeated across at least six public statements since Tuesday.
The White House messaging has escalated in specificity and venue since The Zioneer first reported Tuesday that Iran had agreed to full nuclear inspections and that escrowed sanctions relief would buy American food and medical equipment. By Tuesday afternoon (23:26 Jerusalem), Trump specified corn, wheat, and soybeans; by Wednesday he described Iran as "desperately" hungry. On Friday (14:23 Jerusalem), he framed Iran as a "beautiful country" and a "new market." Throughout, Iranian officials have countered: central bank chief Abdolnaser Hemmati told Tasnim that Tehran is not obligated to buy U.S. food, while parliamentary speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf on Thursday mocked the claim, saying the only crop Iran reaps is distrust. Secretary Bessent's oversight remark is the first time a Cabinet-level official has publicly assigned enforcement responsibility.
As The Zioneer reported, the financial arrangement is tied to a broader diplomatic framework: Vice President JD Vance has described it as a "classic Trump deal" ensuring Iranian funds do not reach the regime's military, and Trump has linked it to keeping the Strait of Hormuz open. Iranian negotiators have denied the U.S. characterization of the terms.
What remains open: It is unclear whether any actual food shipments have begun or whether the escrow mechanism has been funded. Iranian political and military figures continue to deny that the agreement mandates spending on American goods at U.S. prices — a claim that neither Washington nor an independent source has verified on the record.
6 developments
- StrongTrump says Iran will grant IAEA access to bombed nuclear sites, use frozen funds for US food
- DevelopingIran’s central bank chief: We are not committed to buying US agricultural goods
- DevelopingIran rejects U.S.-GCC statement as nuclear diplomacy continues
- StrongVance: Iran deal ensures unfrozen assets enrich American farmers, feed Iranian people
Source and signal
- Internal intake