Britain, Iran reopen embassies in wake of deal

Iran’s Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh has started negotiations with the visiting British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond in the Iranian capital.

Several Iranian and British dignitaries, including former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, were seen entering the embassy residence Sunday morning, but it was unclear exactly when the embassy would formally resume operations.

Hammond and the brand new British cost d’affaires, Ajay Sharma, have been attending the embassy reopening ceremony along with representatives of the Iranian Ministry of Overseas Affairs, the Overseas Workplace stated.

Iran’s foreign minister said on Sunday his nation rejects the possibility of restoring the U.S. Embassy in Tehran anytime soon.

The nuclear agreement has prompted a flurry of European visits – including from German and French ministers, marking the end of Iran’s long isolation.

In re-opening the embassy in Tehran, spcialists are working to clean up the building, which involves removing graffiti, including some above a portrait of the Queen which says “Death to England”.

The Iranian Embassy in London was simultaneously reopened in London, theIranian news agency said.

Addressing a largely Iranian audience on the Embassy lawn, Mr Hammond said: “We will not always agree but as confidence and trust grows, there should be no limit over time to what we can achieve together”.

Prime Minister David Cameron called the act a “disgrace”, closed Britain’s embassy and expelled Iran’s diplomats from London.

Zarif welcomed Hammond’s visit, saying Iran was intent on using dialogue to tackle disagreements and address the troubles of the Middle East in what was a “restart” in relations with Britain. “It is a step towards normalising relations, all the other European countries have got embassies open in Tehran, a very regrettable incident caused us to close ours but I’m glad that we’re reopening it”, Lamont said.

Mr Hammond was accompanied by a group of business leaders from several large multinational firms, most from the energy sector.

Britain has spent hundreds of thousands of pounds repairing the damage caused by the Iranian demonstrators nearly four years ago.

The nuclear deal is undergoing a bruising review in the US Congress, but President Barack Obama has vowed to veto any vote against the historic agreement.

South Korean minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Yoo Il-ho is also visiting Iran this week.

British foreign secretary Philip Hammond was on hand to mark the occasion, which represents a further thawing of relations after last month’s nuclear deal was agreed to.

In 2007, Iranian media even claimed to have discovered a secret tunnel running from the embassy under a carpet shop which was used to smuggle “spies and prostitutes”.

Students rampaged for hours through the embassy compound, tearing down the British flag, ripping up pictures of Queen Elizabeth II and trashing offices. Diplomatic ties with the United Kingdom were thus broken once again on March 7, 1989 only to be restored in 1999.