Seoul and Tehran are reportedly mulling over holding their first working-level meeting this month to resolve issues regarding Iran's frozen assets in South Korean banks in line with U.S. sanctions. 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday that First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun explained to U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley by phone earlier in the day Seoul’s plan to host its first working-level discussion with Iran in a follow-up to his agreement with his Iranian counterpart Ali Bagheri Kani last month. 

Officials of South Korea and Iran are reportedly  in discussions on the specific date of the meeting, as well as the level and size of the delegates. The session will most likely be slated for mid-February.

How the frozen Iranian money will be sent to Tehran in case related sanctions are lifted will likely feature as a major agenda for the discussions.

Around seven billion dollars that South Korea used to purchase Iranian oil has been tied up at two South Korean banks since the U.S. put the Iranian central bank on its sanctions list in 2018.

The release of the frozen assets requires approval from the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control.