British foreign minister in Iran to establish embassy four years after being ransacked
- Philip Hammond is first British foreign minister to visit Iran since 2003
- Reopening will include a delegation of business leaders
- Event heralds thawing of relations after diplomatic lows of Ahmadinejad era
The British government has reopened its embassy in Tehran four years after it was ransacked by Iranian anti-sanctions protesters.
UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond travelled to the Iranian capital along with a delegation of business leaders to mark the reopening of the diplomatic mission. Iran will also reopen its embassy in London.
Hammond is the first British foreign secretary to visit Iran since 2003 in what marks a thawing of relations between Tehran and the worlds fifth largest economy.
The UK government has been stepping up efforts in support of British companies interested in doing business in and with Iran following the suspension of most sanctions, which is expected by the middle of 2016.
At the end of July, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) circulated a questionnaire by email to about 1,000 UK firms about their interest and priorities in the Iranian market.
Iranian-British relations hit a low on 28 November 2011 after new sanctions were put in place against the Iranian nuclear programme.
The British diplomatic mission was closed after a mob stormed the UK embassy and another British diplomatic compound in Tehran the following day. The protestors ransacked the ambassadors residence and burned the British flag. The British government also ordered the Iranian embassy in London to close.
Reopening our embassies is a key step to improved bilateral relations. In the first instance, we will want to ensure that the nuclear agreement is a success, including by encouraging trade and investment once sanctions are lifted. Britain and Iran should also be ready to discuss the challenges we both face including terrorism, regional stability, the spread of Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis) counter-narcotics and migration, said Hammond in an official statement,
This move does not mean that we agree on everything. But it is right that Britain and Iran should have a presence in each others countries. The role of embassies is to build co-operation where we agree and to reduce our differences where we dont, added the British foreign secretary.
Hammond said that, initially, the embassy would be led by a charge daffaires with a small staff offering a limited range of consular services. The charge daffaires was named as Ajay Sharma.
Over the months ahead we expect to agree with the Iranians an upgrading of our respective mission leaders to full Ambassador status and to be able to offer a full range of services, Hammond added.
The UK is one of several major European economies courting Iran for business following the historic nuclear agreement signed on 14 July.
Germany sent a trade delegation to Iran the week after the deal was finalised, while France has invited Irans President Hassan Rouhani to visit Paris in November.
Italy has also been active in Iran. Earlier this month Fata, the engineering division of Italys Finmeccanic, won a 500m ($569m) contract to build a combined-cycle power station in Bandar Abbas.
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