Kerry: American Citizens Would Be Released Even If Sanctions Were Not Lifted

John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State, dismissed any direct connection between the release of Iranian-American citizens and the lifting of sanctions against Iran, stating: "American citizens [imprisoned in Iran] would have been released even if the sanctions remained in place." Speculation about a link between these two events intensified after the prisoners were freed just hours before the implementation of the nuclear agreement. However, Mr. Kerry, in an interview with CNN on Monday, January 28, denied any direct connection, calling their timing coincidental and saying: "In fact, I had hoped these individuals would be released one or two months earlier, but we encountered obstacles and continued negotiations until the matter coincidentally aligned at that time." He added: "I think everyone felt that the release of these individuals at that time was a good omen. But these two issues were not directly related." On the evening of Saturday, January 27, just hours before the announcement of the implementation of the JCPOA and the lifting of sanctions related to Iran's nuclear program, the Tehran prosecutor announced the release of four Iranian-American citizens. Shortly thereafter, an American student imprisoned in Tehran named Matthew Trevithick, whose imprisonment had not been previously reported, was also released. At the same time, American media reported the release of seven Iranian prisoners in the U.S. in a deal to exchange them for five prisoners released in Iran. Jason Rezaian, Saeed Abedini, Amir Hekmati, and Nasratollah Khosravi Rudesari were four Iranian-American citizens who were freed from prison. The first three left Iran on Sunday, but reports indicate that Nasratollah Khosravi Rudesari remained in Tehran "at his own request." In the CNN interview, John Kerry also confirmed that the delay in the flight of Jason Rezaian, the released imprisoned reporter for the Washington Post in Tehran, and Saeed Abedini and Amir Hekmati was due to confusion regarding the status of Yeganeh Salehi, Mr. Rezaian's wife. The Secretary of State stated: "The reason was that Ms. Salehi's name had not been added to the list of passengers scheduled to leave on this flight for some reason, and it was not clear that she was also going with her husband. However, Iranian officials quickly realized that the simultaneous exit of Ms. Salehi was also a condition of the agreement." John Kerry then explained that "it took some time to locate Ms. Salehi and accompany her with Jason." Mr. Kerry had previously stated on October 13 that during months of negotiations over the nuclear program with Tehran, the issue of the release of imprisoned American citizens in Iran was raised in every meeting, but Washington did not want the fate of the negotiations to hinge on this issue. Meanwhile, the Obama administration on Monday, January 28, added 11 other individuals and entities to the list of sanctions against Iran in connection with the "Emad" missile test. Reports indicated that these new sanctions were supposed to be announced in early January but were postponed due to concerns about jeopardizing the prisoner exchange negotiations between the two countries. The Associated Press reported, citing American officials, that Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, had warned the U.S. Secretary of State that the imposition of these new sanctions could harm the prisoner exchange program between the two countries.