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Iran has no plan to trade jailed Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian for Iranian prisoners detained in the US, said an Iranian official Tuesday.
Last week, the The Guardian reported that Iranian authorities might use reporter Jason Rezaian as a political pawn.
But this is not the case, said Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Hassan Ghashghavi, according to the local Tasnim and Fars news agencies:
"An exchange of Jason Rezaian is not on the agenda. Each of the issues has their own separate case," he was quoted saying.
He also said the US holds 19 Iranian political prisoners.
Rezaian, who has been imprisoned in Iran for 13 months, awaits a verdict in his closed-door espionage trial. The fourth hearing, which was reportedly the last in his case, was held on August 10, 2015. He could face up to 20 years in prison.
Rezaian's arrest and trial has been widely condemned internationally.
A spokesman for Iran's judiciary said last week that Rezaian's arrest had nothing to do with his being a journalist.
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