The U.S. transferred a total of $1.7 billion in cash to Iran in order to settle a long-running dispute over a failed 1979 arms deal, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
The WSJ said late Tuesday that U.S. President Barack Obama's administration sent $400 million in cash to Iran in January, with two more subsequent shipments of similar amounts, totaling another $1.3 billion, according to congressional officials briefed by the U.S. State, Treasury and Justice departments.
"The cash payments — made in Swiss francs, euros and other currencies— settled a decades-old dispute over a failed arms deal dating back to 1979," the WSJ reported.
It said that U.S. officials acknowledged that the payment of the first $400 million "coincided with Iran's release of American prisoners and was used as leverage to ensure they were flown out of Tehran's Mehrabad on the morning of January 17."
The newspaper noted that the "revelations come as Congress returns from a summer recess with Republicans vowing to pursue charges that the White House paid ransom to Tehran, a charge President Barack Obama has repeatedly rejected."