Iran and Qatar consider establishing joint currency exchange entity
The head of Iran-Qatar Joint Chamber of Commerce has proposed the establishment of a financial institution aimed at facilitating transfer of funds to and from Qatar.
The head of Iran-Qatar Joint Chamber of Commerce has proposed the establishment of a financial institution aimed at facilitating transfer of funds to and from Qatar.
"We support efforts for a ceasefire on the condition that it would be acceptable to the Lebanese people, acceptable to the resistance, and thirdly, it would be synchronized with a ceasefire in Gaza," he said.
Araghchi's Friday visit to Lebanon comes amid heightened tensions in the region, with airstrikes hitting near Beirut's airport overnight and ongoing Israeli ground operations in southern Lebanon.
Marking his first official visit to Lebanon since assuming office, Araghchi stressed Iran's unwavering support for Hezbollah, stating that his presence in Beirut, despite the bombings, reflects this commitment. "Iran will always stand with the people of Lebanon," he tweeted.
Esmaeil Baghaei, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, also announced via Twitter that the delegation would deliver 10 tons of food and medicine as humanitarian assistance to Lebanon.
Iranian state media reported that the visit has a dual purpose: to support the Resistance—Tehran’s term for militias it backs in the region—and to preserve political and diplomatic processes. "Araghchi's visit to Beirut, following the change in government and his participation in the UN General Assembly with a firm anti-Israel stance, signals that the Islamic Republic of Iran's policy will remain steadfast, even in the face of new circumstances," Fararu wrote.
During his trip, Araghchi met with Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a close ally of Hezbollah. In meetings with Lebanese officials, Araghchi emphasized the need for global unity to prevent the region from falling into an "imposed and unwanted war," warning against the repetition of "Israel’s heinous crimes in Gaza" in Lebanon, according to Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson.
Tensions in the region have sharply escalated since September when Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced an expansion of military operations targeting Hezbollah in northern Israel and Lebanon. Gallant said the action was necessary for the safe return of civilians displaced by Hezbollah attacks since October 8.
On September 17 and 18, around 1,500 Hezbollah fighters were severely injured by explosions caused by tampered pagers and walkie-talkies. This added to the growing conflict.
The situation worsened earlier this week when Iran entered the arena again to launch missile strikes on Israel in retaliation for the deaths of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iranian commander Abbas Nilforoushan, both killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon. As tensions continue to rise, Israel has promised further retaliation, sparking fears of potential strikes on Iran’s oil or nuclear facilities.
IRGC General Esmail Kowsari, who is currently a member of the Iranian parliament's national security committee, told Didban Iran website in Tehran: "Although the Lebanese Hezbollah is capable of confronting the IDF, we welcome the deployment of volunteer forces to Lebanon from Iran."
Kowsari also promised that Israel's spies and infiltrators in Lebanon will be identified and punished. Following the death of Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah in Beirut in an Israeli strike last week, some hardliners in Iran, including the former head of the international affairs department of Khamenei's office and former lawmaker and intelligence officer Mohammad Hassan Asafari insisted that volunteers from Iran should be deployed to Lebanon.
Hardliners in Iran made similar claims last year, vowing to send millions of volunteers to Gaza following the October 7 attack on Israel and the outbreak of war. However, reaching Gaza was physically impossible at the time. Now, in response to these renewed statements, Iranians opposed to the Islamic Republic are pointing out that the road to Lebanon is open, and those who truly “volunteer” should have no hesitation in going.
Meanwhile, videos circulating on social media showed banners calling for the deployment of Iranian combatants through Tehran airport. A viewer who shared one of these videos with Iran International TV mentioned that buses were on-site to transport volunteers to the airport, but no actual deployment plan seemed to be in place upon arrival.
Kowsari further opined that Israeli forces are not capable of being involved in military actions in two fronts in Gaza and Lebanon, despite clear evidence to the contrary.
Another IRGC General Morteza Rafighdoost, who was the Islamic Republic's IRGC Minister from 1982 to 1988, said in an interview that "All options including deploying military forces from Iran to Lebanon and the Golan Heights in Syria is on Iran's agenda."
Rafighdoost claimed that "Iran has the manpower for decades of war against all the world powers." He also stated that Iran does not need the support of Russia or China in its confrontation with Israel. Furthermore, he boasted that Iran’s massive ballistic missile attack on Israel had brought joy to "hundreds of millions of people" worldwide, despite widespread condemnation of the attack and evidence showing that many missiles failed to hit their targets.
Meanwhile, aviation experts on social media criticized Iranian officials for not clearing the country's airspace before launching the October 1 attack. Videos on social media show passenger aircraft changing route over Urmia and landing in Shiraz against a backdrop of missiles flying in the sky despite the obvious danger for civilians. In the meantime, some failing missiles dropped in areas including Zanjan near Tehran.
In another interview, IRGC General Nosrat Ahvazian claimed that at least two million Iranians were ready to be deployed to Lebanon to fight Israel. However, in the same interview, he dismissed Israeli officials’ promises of a major retaliatory attack on Iran following Tehran's ballistic missile strike on Tuesday night. Interestingly, despite initially citing the two million figure, Ahvazian later stated that 400,000 Iranian "resistance fighters" were prepared for deployment to Lebanon, contradicting his earlier claim.
Ahvazian who led a secret IRGC headquarters during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, further claimed that tens of Iranian youths call him over the phone every day and beg to be deployed to Lebanon.
In a more strange comment, Ahvazian said that the reason why Israeli forces have attacked Lebanon is that they want to flee Gaza where they have a hard time fighting Hamas.
These and similar remarks about Iranians' willingness to fight in Lebanon seem to be part of the IRGC's psychological operations aimed at masking their own and the public’s fear of an impending major strike on Iran’s infrastructure, as promised by Israeli officials.
Mostafa Salehinejad discussed the plan a day after President Masoud Pezeshkian returned from Qatar. Upon his arrival, the President announced that Tehran had reached an "understanding" with Doha regarding the $6 billion Iranian fund, which had been released last year from South Korean banks and is currently held in Qatar.
In August 2023, the US and Iran reached an agreement that led to the exchange of five detained Americans in Tehran for five Iranians imprisoned in the US. A crucial part of the deal was the transfer of $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets from South Korean banks to Qatar, allowing Iran conditional access to the funds for the purchase of non-sanctioned goods.
However, following the Hamas attack in October, the US and Qatar agreed to impose restrictions on Iran's access to these funds, halting the full disbursement but not completely freezing the assets.
Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in December that the money is accessible to Iran despite calls from Washington to withhold it. The Central Bank of Iran said earlier this year that the fund is deposited in Iran’s accounts in two Qatari banks. Pezeshkian’s remarks in Doha hinted that restrictions continue to prevent Tehran from accessing the funds.
Iran's international banking transactions are also under US sanctions, which hampers fund transfers to and from the country.
Salehinejad expressed hope that the president's visit would result in the establishment of an exchange bureau, which would significantly streamline financial transactions.
A joint exchange house could potentially help in bypassing international sanctions, allowing Iran greater access to foreign currency and enabling smoother trade operations.
“Iranian traders currently have to transfer their foreign earnings to the UAE first and then to Iran, which reduces their profits by 20%,” he said.“The main solution is the establishment of a joint bank, which does not seem feasible due to sanctions" imposed on Iran’s banking sector.
Underlining that Qatar is committed to international laws that focus on sanctions against Iran, Salehinejad said that “under these circumstances, if the outcome of the Iranian President's visit to Qatar is the establishment of this very currency exchange entity, it will be a significant achievement.”
He noted that the plan was under study during the previous Iranian administration and voiced optimism that it will be implemented under the current one.
