US President Donald Trump announced plans to use frozen Iranian assets to buy American agricultural products, including wheat, soybeans, and corn for Iran. He called it a "new market" for US farmers and said the process would start soon and be large in scale[ s2,s3,s4,s5,s6,s7,s8]. "We're going to be buying wheat, soybeans and corn, a lot of it," Trump said. "That process is going to be starting soon. It's going to be pretty big" [1].
On June 25, Trump reaffirmed these plans at a White House event, emphasizing the size and speed of the expected purchases[ s1,s3,s4,s8]. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen echoed the president's comments, stating that most of the thawed Iranian funds would be used to buy US food and medicine[ s1].
In response, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf firmly denied that Iran would use the frozen assets to buy US agricultural goods. He criticized the US claims sarcastically, saying, "The only crop you have produced over several decades is distrust," and accusing the US of exporting genetically modified soybeans, false promises, and nonsense[ s1,s3,s4,s8]. Ghalibaf said, "美国謊稱我們解凍的資產將用於購買他們的農產品。真有意思，我們唯一收成的作物，就是你們幾十年來親手種下的『不信任』。這份『作物』天然形成、收成豐碩……美國出口的顯然只有基改大豆、空頭支票和垃圾話" [2].
The conflicting statements highlight a sharp divide over whether these funds will be used for agricultural imports. Trump’s announcement came first on June 23 followed by repeated affirmations and denials on June 25 by both sides[ s1,s3,s4,s8].
Meanwhile, Trump has asked Congress for $11.1 billion in aid targeting US agriculture, partially tied to supporting farmers amid these international dealings[ s7]. This funding request was submitted on June 25 as well.
The next key step will likely be Congressional consideration of the $11.1 billion aid package backing American farmers, alongside monitoring if and when any Iranian purchases from frozen assets begin.
