price beyond confirming..?

[pdh0224]

Dear teacher,

In reporting the acquisition, the Met would not discuss price beyond confirming that it was the most costly purchase in its history. (In such deals, buyers are often legally bound not to reveal the sale price.) But art experts familiar with the deal, insisting on anonymity for fear of jeopardizing the sale, said the price was $45 million to $50 million. That would top the Met's previous record purchase, of Jasper Johns's "White Flag'' (1955) for more than $20 million in 1998.

Q : The bold portion means "the Met would not discuss price that comfirmed that it was...."doesn't it? What meaning does "beyond" add to the context?

[Alan]

No, it is roughly equivalent to 'except to confirm/with the exception of confirming...', but meaning more specifically that actions not done would be somehow 'greater than' (i.e. go beyond) those done, and here therefore suggesting that the confirmation given is a relatively minor point compared with an actual statement of price.