White Home National Security Spokesman John Kirby hit back at critics of a brand new prisoner deal, and stated the $6 billion account on the heart of it was once created underneath then-President Donald Trump’s watch.

The U.S. reached a deal to free 5 prisoners — three of whom had been identified as Siamak Namazi, Emad Sharghi, and Morad Tahbaz — in exchange for get admission to to $6 billion in Iranian oil assets and the freeing of a few Iranians imprisoned for violating sanctions. Many Biden opponents have slammed the deal.

On Friday morning’s edition of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Kirby headed off a few of these criticisms — specifically the $6 billion account, which he said can best be used for humanitarian purposes, and was once created underneath Trump:

JOE SCARBOROUGH: Admiral, inform us about this deal.

ADM. JOHN KIRBY: Well, so we’re nonetheless negotiating the deal, Joe. So we’re being just a little bit careful about how so much we put out in the public area. We’re happy that these 5 Americans at the moment are out of Evin Jail. That’s a just right thing. It’s a just right first step. There’s a lot more steps to return here.

Now, I’ve seen the hypothesis and the criticism about this $6 billion. I feel you represent it exactly right. And I believe it’s necessary to understand that, once more, with out getting too some distance beforehand of where we are within the negotiating course of, that what we’re talking about listed below are Iranian money that were in a South Korean account that they couldn’t get admission to for lots of technical causes. This was an account arrange by way of the earlier administration. They did it with South Korea and 7 different international locations beneath what’s known as a significant discount exception software. It was a approach to discourage international locations from importing Iranian oil.

Now, the Iranians can’t get, couldn’t get that account unfrozen. They couldn’t get get admission to to that cash. So what we’re talking about doing is transferring that account to a country like Qatar the place they may be able to get get admission to to it, but only for discreet, restricted, and narrow humanitarian functions. And the USA and Qatar and support companies can have the fitting to veto any withdrawal request to make it possible for it’s going to the Iranian individuals and to not the regime.

The regime gained’t get a dime of this. It’s all designed for food, medicine, clinical tools for the Iranian folks. And again, this is a, this is a move that would make it accessible to them.

Watch above by way of MSNBC’s Morning Joe.

The post Biden Spox Kirby Hits Again at Critics of Prisoner Deal — Points Out $6 Billion Account Created Under Trump first appeared on Mediaite.