Iran’s top military adviser Mohsen Rezaei has warned that failure to release $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets could derail a potential peace agreement with the United States. In an interview with CNN in Tehran, Rezaei, who serves as a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said negotiations are stalled and urged U.S. President Donald Trump to act. He cautioned that renewed conflict would push the U.S. into a “dark tunnel.”

Rezaei stated that Iran demands the immediate release of $12 billion following an interim deal, with another $12 billion to follow, calling the move a trust-building measure. U.S. officials reportedly fear that releasing the funds could weaken their leverage. Trump has insisted any new deal must be stronger than the 2015 nuclear accord and avoid perceptions of cash transfers. Rezaei also rejected the possibility of a Trump-Khamenei meeting and asserted Iran’s joint sovereignty with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz.

He warned that if war resumes, Iran would expand operations beyond the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean, though he said the likelihood of renewed fighting remains low.