{"id":2198916,"date":"2022-09-08T10:54:21","date_gmt":"2022-09-08T10:54:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2198916"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:11:38","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:11:38","slug":"south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal"},"content":{"rendered":"

Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran\u2019s nuclear program are teetering on the edge of failure, and few are as anxious to know whether the two countries will strike another deal as South Korea.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite its American ally\u2019s long-standing suspicions over Iran\u2019s nuclear program, Seoul has managed to maintain economic relations with Iran and is keen to move past recent friction and resume trade with the oil juggernaut.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Resource-deficient South Korea needs to import energy to keep its industry going, and it gets the <\/span>vast majority<\/span><\/a> of that from the Middle East. South Korea was the <\/span>second-largest importer<\/span><\/a> of Iranian oil in March 2019, just before it cut imports as a consequence of the Trump administration\u2019s <\/span>withdrawal<\/span><\/a> from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal with Iran.<\/span><\/p>\n

Seoul values this trade with Iran so highly that it reluctantly accept Tehran\u2019s cooperation with Pyongyang. But South Korea is unwilling to pay the price that would result from bucking U.S. sanctions, meaning the future of its ties with Iran depend in large part on the result of the ongoing nuclear talks.<\/span><\/p>\n

LUCRATIVE TIES<\/b><\/p>\n

To understand how much South Korea has to gain from another Iran nuclear deal, one need only look back at how the 2015 JCPOA opened the floodgates to expand cooperation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Similar to today, U.S.-led sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program limited the extent to which Seoul could work with Tehran. By 2015, bilateral trade had dropped to <\/span>around a third<\/span><\/a> of what it was in 2011.<\/span><\/p>\n

This was extremely regretful for Seoul: Iran had been crucial for South Korea\u2019s economy since they <\/span>established relations<\/span><\/a> in the early 1960s, following dictator Park Chung-hee\u2019s rise to power and his drive for industrialization.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Even though Tehran came to see South Korea\u2019s American ally as the \u201cGreat Satan\u201d following the Iranian Revolution, the mutually beneficial exchange of South Korean construction for Iranian oil <\/span>propelled the relationship forward<\/span><\/a> over the next few decades.<\/span><\/p>\n

Only months after the JCPOA came into effect, then-President Park Geun-hye flew to Tehran for the first-ever South Korea-Iran summit in May 2016. After the meeting with her Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani, she walked away with provisional deals in construction and energy <\/span>worth $45.6 billion<\/span><\/a> \u2014 the highest ever from a single summit, <\/span>according to Seoul<\/span><\/a> at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Park Geun-hye held a summit with Hassan Rouhani shortly after the JCPOA | Image: Republic of Korea<\/a> (May 3, 2016)<\/p><\/div>\n

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY<\/b><\/p>\n

Trade with Iran is so important to South Korea that Seoul is apparently willing to pursue ties despite Tehran\u2019s military relationship with North Korea.<\/span><\/p>\n

Iran has been importing North Korean arms since the overthrow of the U.S.-backed Shah in 1979 and the brutal Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. Pyongyang has <\/span>earned billions<\/span><\/a> by funneling weapons into the Middle East, much of which likely goes back into its missile and nuclear program \u2014 an existential threat to South Korea.<\/span><\/p>\n

Iran has received so much support from North Korea that all of its liquid-fueled missiles appear to derive in part <\/span>from DPRK designs<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

And while South Korea <\/span>certainly isn\u2019t happy<\/span><\/a> about Tehran\u2019s nuclear program, the <\/span>parallels<\/span><\/a> between the North Korea and Iran threats haven\u2019t turned it off the relationship either. Perhaps its experience with North Korea convinced it that a nuclear deal is <\/span>necessary<\/span><\/a>, despite <\/span>objections<\/span><\/a> from Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a recent <\/span>interview with <\/span>Korea Pro<\/span><\/i><\/a>, Israeli Ambassador to the ROK Akiva Tor said \u2014 without directly referencing South Korea \u2014 that countries \u201cnot on the receiving end of the hard-edge push of Shiite expansionism in the region\u201d are \u201cunderestimating how other parts of the world are reacting to Iran\u2019s aggression.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

South Korean foreign minister Park Jin meets Iranian Ambassador to the ROK Saeed Badamchi Shabestari | Image: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Republic of Korea<\/a> (June 9, 2022)<\/p><\/div>\n

Nevertheless, whether or not South Korea agrees with the sanctions on Iran, it isn\u2019t doing anything to break them.<\/span><\/p>\n

The biggest roadblock in bilateral relations at the moment is the issue of $7 billion worth of Iranian funds locked in South Korean banks due to sanctions. However much it might want to get relations with Tehran back on track, Seoul <\/span>maintains<\/span><\/a> that \u201cthe fastest way for Iran to receive the assets is the U.S. and Iran reaching a nuclear agreement.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This is despite the harm its refusal to unblock the funds is doing to relations with Tehran.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cKorea\u2019s image is getting damaged in Iran,\u201d Iranian Ambassador Saeed Badamchi Shabestari said in a <\/span>recent interview<\/span><\/a> with South Korean media. He also protested that Seoul\u2019s refusal to unfreeze the funds meant Tehran <\/span>couldn\u2019t import medicine and medical devices<\/span><\/a> from South Korea to help with a <\/span>devastating COVID-19 outbreak<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Worryingly for South Korea, Iran even seems to have resorted to threats to get its money: Tehran <\/span>apparently<\/span><\/a> took a South Korean chemical tanker and captain hostage for alleged environmental violations, only releasing them after Seoul agreed to give $1 billion of the frozen funds to Iran through a U.S.-approved Swiss humanitarian channel in 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, there has been some sign of flexibility on the frozen assets issue from the Joe Biden administration, which is pushing for another Iran nuclear deal. At the beginning of this year, Washington <\/span>gave permission<\/span><\/a> for South Korea to use the frozen assets to pay $18 million of Iran\u2019s dues at the U.N., restoring Tehran\u2019s voting rights.<\/span><\/p>\n

ON A BREAK?<\/b><\/p>\n

Even though it is lamenting South Korea\u2019s decision to follow sanctions, Iran is <\/span>emphasizing<\/span><\/a> the 1,000-year-old historical links between the countries ahead of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations on Oct. 23 this year. These include the pre-Islamic epic <\/span>\u201cKushnameh,\u201d<\/span><\/a> which tells the story of a marriage between a Persian prince and a Korean princess in the seventh century, and Iranians\u2019 <\/span>love for K-dramas<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

And despite everything the relationship has been through, <\/span>Tehran Street and Seoul Park<\/span><\/a> remain the only street and park named after a foreign city in South Korea and Iran, respectively.<\/span><\/p>\n

Even so, <\/span>dimming hopes<\/span><\/a> for a breakthrough in negotiations between Washington and Tehran raise the risk that South Korea and Iran might not have much to celebrate any time soon.<\/span><\/p>\n

Edited by Bryan Betts<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Business & Economy<\/span><\/a>Defense & Security<\/span><\/a>Inter-Korean & Foreign Relations<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran\u2019s nuclear program are teetering on the edge of failure, and few are as anxious to know whether the two countries will strike another deal as South Korea. Despite its American ally\u2019s long-standing suspicions over Iran\u2019s nuclear program, Seoul has managed to maintain economic relations with Iran and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7824,"featured_media":2198921,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[24,26,28],"yoast_head":"\nSouth Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran\u2019s nuclear program are teetering on the edge of failure, and few are as anxious to know whether the two countries will strike another deal as South Korea. Despite its American ally\u2019s long-standing suspicions over Iran\u2019s nuclear program, Seoul has managed to maintain economic relations with Iran and […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-09-08T10:54:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-05T07:11:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/09\/Irans-Supreme-Leader-Ayatollah-Ali-Khamenei-1.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"935\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ariusderr\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"James Fretwell\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"ariusderr\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3dff0dfd06b9d9d7f399cfa3fc7ed5db\"},\"headline\":\"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-09-08T10:54:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-05T07:11:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\"},\"wordCount\":1058,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Business & Economy\",\"Defense & Security\",\"Inter-Korean & Foreign Relations\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Analysis\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\",\"name\":\"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal - KOREA PRO\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-09-08T10:54:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-05T07:11:38+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\",\"name\":\"KOREA PRO\",\"description\":\"Be smart about South Korea. Up-to-date analysis on foreign relations, politics, society and economy. Made by the producers of NK PRO and NK News.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"KOREA PRO\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png\",\"width\":360,\"height\":50,\"caption\":\"KOREA PRO\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/southkoreapro\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal - KOREA PRO","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal - KOREA PRO","og_description":"Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran\u2019s nuclear program are teetering on the edge of failure, and few are as anxious to know whether the two countries will strike another deal as South Korea. Despite its American ally\u2019s long-standing suspicions over Iran\u2019s nuclear program, Seoul has managed to maintain economic relations with Iran and […]","og_url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/","og_site_name":"KOREA PRO","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/","article_published_time":"2022-09-08T10:54:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-04-05T07:11:38+00:00","og_image":[{"width":935,"height":500,"url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/09\/Irans-Supreme-Leader-Ayatollah-Ali-Khamenei-1.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"ariusderr","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@southkoreapro","twitter_site":"@southkoreapro","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"James Fretwell","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/"},"author":{"name":"ariusderr","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3dff0dfd06b9d9d7f399cfa3fc7ed5db"},"headline":"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal","datePublished":"2022-09-08T10:54:21+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-05T07:11:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/"},"wordCount":1058,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization"},"keywords":["Business & Economy","Defense & Security","Inter-Korean & Foreign Relations"],"articleSection":["Analysis"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/","name":"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal - KOREA PRO","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website"},"datePublished":"2022-09-08T10:54:21+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-05T07:11:38+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/south-korea-set-to-lose-big-if-us-and-iran-cant-agree-on-new-nuclear-deal\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"South Korea set to lose big if US and Iran can\u2019t agree on new nuclear deal"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/","name":"KOREA PRO","description":"Be smart about South Korea. Up-to-date analysis on foreign relations, politics, society and economy. Made by the producers of NK PRO and NK News.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization","name":"KOREA PRO","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png","width":360,"height":50,"caption":"KOREA PRO"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/","https:\/\/twitter.com\/southkoreapro"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198916"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7824"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2198916"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198916\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2199004,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198916\/revisions\/2199004"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2198921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2198916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2198916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2198916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}