British Foreign Secretary Reopens Embassy in Tehran

TEHRAN, Iran— Britain reopened its embassy in Tehran Sunday in a sign of newly thawed relations in the wake of a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond attended the reopening ceremony and witnesse...
British Foreign Secretary Reopens Embassy in Tehran
Escorted by Iranian police, a convoy carrying British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond enters the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2015. AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi
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TEHRAN, Iran— Britain reopened its embassy in Tehran Sunday in a sign of newly thawed relations in the wake of a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond attended the reopening ceremony and witnessed the raising of the Union flag over the compound. The embassy has been closed since November 2011, when it was stormed by demonstrators protesting the imposition of international sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

“Maintaining dialogue even under the most difficult conditions is crucially important,” Hammond said during a joint press conference with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. “So reopening the embassy in Tehran and the Iranian embassy in London is not just an important symbol. It’s an important practical channel for being able to engage on the very many issues that are of concern and the very many issues that we have shared interests.”