--- title: President Obama Denies $400 Million Iran Payment Was Ransom description: The president denied speculation that a $400 million payment to Iran was a ransom payment for four American hostages released in January canonical: https://time.com/4439884/obama-denies-iran-ransom-payment/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-04T21:44:24.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-30T12:12:28.620Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Obama Denies $400 Million Iran Payment Was a Ransom og:description: "We do not pay ransom for hostages" og:url: https://time.com/4439884/obama-denies-iran-ransom-payment/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab18f3e94482f850/6988a0f0524fc0341adf9055/president-barack-obama-isis-army-recruits.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: President Obama Makes Statement On Mass Shooting In Orlando At White House og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Obama Denies $400 Million Iran Payment Was a Ransom twitter:description: "We do not pay ransom for hostages" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab18f3e94482f850/6988a0f0524fc0341adf9055/president-barack-obama-isis-army-recruits.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Obama Denies $400 Million Payment to Iran Was a Ransom > Sponsored content. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) and [Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/) Aug 4, 2016 9:44 PM UTC  President Barack Obama speaks on June 12, 2016 in Washington. President Barack Obama speaks on June 12, 2016 in Washington. Alex Wong—Getty Images by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) and [Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/) Aug 4, 2016 9:44 PM UTC President Barack Obama attempted to shoot down speculation that the United States had paid a ransom to Iran for the release of four American hostages. Instead, Obama said Thursday that [a $400 million cash transfer](http://time.com/4436518/us-sent-iran-cash-hostages/?iid=sr-link1) sent to Tehran in January only coincidentally aligned with the release of the hostages. “We do not pay ransom for hostages. We’ve got a number of Americans being held around the world and I meet with their families and it’s heartbreaking,” the president said. “But those families know that we have a policy that we don’t pay ransom.” He denied that there was any sort of “nefarious deal,” saying that the payment was not made in secret and that the White House announced the transfer in January. Obama spoke from the Pentagon after a meeting on counter-ISIS efforts with administration officials. Obama said Thursday that the US will continue to aggressively attack the terror network, though he said it seems that ISIS’ diminished presence in Syria is influencing attacks abroad. “None of ISIL’s leaders are safe and we are going to keep going after them,” the president said. Obama says ISIS has not had a major offensive operation in Syria in a full year and that they will “inevitably” be defeated but it will take more that military efforts to stop the group. Earlier in the week the White House vehemently denied that the administration had delivered the payment to Tehran in exchange for American prisoners. Secretary of State John Kerry commented on the situation earlier Thursday, saying that the $400 million transfer was not a ransom payment. “The United States does not pay ransom and does not negotiate ransoms,” Kerry reportedly said. “It is not our policy. This story is not a new story. 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