Washington secretly flew in $400million in CASH just as four American detainees were released by Tehran
The colossal settlement also coincided with the landmark nuclear deal between the two countries
PRESIDENT Obama secretly organised an airlift of $400 million in cash to Iran that coincided with the January release of four Americans detained in Tehran.
According to the , this astonishing revelation was made by U.S and European officials briefed on the operation.
Wooden pallets stacked with Euros, Swiss francs and other currencies were allegedly flown into Iran on an unmarked cargo plane.
The Obama administration drew the money from the central banks of the Netherlands and Switzerland as using American dollars in Iran is illegal under U.S law.
However, Washington insists that the colossal sum was not a ransom but the first installment of a $1.7 billion settlement reached to resolve a failed 1979 arms deal which was struck just before the Iranian Revolution.
State Department spokesman John Kirby denied the cash transfer was done to secure the release of the four Americans.
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He said: “The negotiations over the [arms deal] settlement were completely separate from the discussions about returning our American citizens home.
"Not only were the two negotiations separate, they were conducted by different teams on each side."
The huge settlement also coincided with the landmark nuclear agreement reached between the two countries.
President Barack Obama mentioned the agreement, although did speak about the sum involved, at a White House news conference on January 17.
He said: “With the nuclear deal done, prisoners released, the time was right to resolve this dispute as well."
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