Britain Says Seeks to Promote Trade, Investment Activities in Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Britain’s foreign secretary said Sunday his country plans to increase its cooperation with Iran’s central bank in an attempt to facilitate banking and investment activities between the two nations after a thaw in relations.
"I think it would be very helpful and very positive if we could begin a dialogue about how we can create conditions which would allow British banks and British financial institutions to engage in the financing of trade and investment in Iran," Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told Valiollah Seif, governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), at a meeting in Tehran on Sunday, Reuters reported.
Hammond added that both sides are licking their lips to reawaken their commercial and industrial activities.
"There is a huge appetite both on the part of our commercial and industrial businesses to engage with the opportunity of Iran opening up and there is huge appetite on the part of our financial institutions to support that activity but of course it has to be done in the proper way," he said.
The British foreign secretary arrived in Tehran on Sunday to reopen the British embassy after a 4-year closure.
After arrival in Tehran, Hammond described his visit as a "historic moment in Iran-UK relations."
Simultaneously, Iran’s embassy in London was also reopened.
Only BBC reporters were allowed in the ceremony to reopen the British embassy.
Back on Saturday, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for American and European Affairs Majid Takht Ravanchi said Tehran and London have still no plans to appoint ambassadors.
The status of non-resident charge d’affaires of the two countries will change into resident, the Iranian diplomat said, adding that the British embassy will only issue “diplomatic and service visas” after being reopened.
The thaw in Iran-Britain relations follows finalization of a landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14.
On November 27, 2011, a large majority of Iranian lawmakers voted to downgrade diplomatic ties with Britain, following Britain’s decision to impose sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran.
Later, angry Iranian students stormed the British embassy in Tehran and pulled down the European country’s flag.
Following the incident, Britain withdrew its diplomatic staff from Tehran on November 30 and asked Iran’s diplomatic delegation in London to leave within 48 hours.
The two countries made diplomatic efforts afterwards to amend ties.
