Biden adviser says US is ‘on the hook’ for Iran’s $300B, but reports say half is already covered by private investment

President Trump’s recent peace deal with Iran could come with a big price tag — despite what he and Vice President JD Vance say.

The memorandum of understanding (MOU), which Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkain signed on June 17, says (1): “The United States of America undertakes, with regional partners, to develop a definitive mutually agreed plan with at least USD 300 Billion, for the reconstruction and economic development of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

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The memorandum was leaked to several press outlets on condition of anonymity.

As written, the plan gives Iran $300 billion, unfreezes the country’s frozen and restricted funds and raises sanctions the U.S. has brought against Iran. Former U.S. President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, gave Iran access to around $50 billion of their own frozen assets — something that Trump has spoken against on many occasions (2).

“Barack Obama gave Iranian terrorists pallets of cash. President Trump negotiated a performance-based MOU that stops Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon,” said White House assistant press secretary Olivia Wales in an email to Moneywise. “The failed Obama policy was defined by appeasement; the successful Trump policy is defined by American strength.”

Here’s what you need to know about the deal as it stands.

Trump says other nations will pay the $300 billion

Trump initially denied the $300 billion fund entirely (3). Now, both Trump and Vance deny that the U.S. will be the one paying it (4).

“There is no 300 Billion Dollar payment to Iran by the U.S. That’s Fake News!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on June 18 (5). “All there is for the U.S. is Success, Lower Oil Prices, and Victory. Check out the Stock Market. Dumocrat propaganda at play!!!”

However, former national security advisor under President Joe Biden and President Obama, Jake Sullivan, isn’t so sure.

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“If the U.S. is saying Iran gets $300 billion to keep the deal going, and other countries don’t step up to the plate or the private sector doesn’t step up to the plate, then, in a way, the United States is on the hook,” Sullivan told NPR (6).

Sullivan says that finding people to provide the $300 billion “is going to be a challenge.” But Reuters reported that a little more than half of that cost has already been covered by private-sector investments, according to an anonymous source with direct knowledge of the MOU (7).

The source says that companies in the U.S. have agreed to make commitments, as well as companies in South Korea, Singapore, Japan and Malaysia.

Trump has a short timeline to finalize the deal

To avoid using taxpayer money as part of this deal, the U.S. will have to find investors to contribute to the fund within 60 days, which is the time the MOU allots to figure out this plan and finish negotiating other aspects of the deal, such as what to do with Iran’s stockpile of enriched material (1).

“During these 60 days the fund administrators will work with Iranians and investors to plan and scope projects,” said the Reuters source (7).

However, Sullivan believes that isn’t enough time.

“It took us almost two years… to get a full Iran nuclear deal — the JCPOA,” Sullivan says (6). “The idea that they will negotiate the full terms of a nuclear deal in 60 days, I think, is virtually impossible.”

Meanwhile, if those 60 days pass without a deal, Trump doesn’t seem like he’s planning on being patient.

“If it doesn’t get done in 60 days, it’s all right,” he says (8). “We go back to bombing.”

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Article Sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.

NPR (1), (6); CNN (2); Roll Call (3); YouTube (4); Truth Social (5); Reuters (7); BBC (8).

This article originally appeared on Moneywise.com under the title: Biden adviser says US is ‘on the hook’ for Iran’s $300B, but reports say half is already covered by private investment

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