TEHRAN – Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis will visit Tehran next week to celebrate the centenary of Switzerland’s diplomatic presence in Iran.

According to Mehr, Cassis is scheduled to visit Tehran on September 5-7 to attend the ceremony. 

Cassis has served since November 1, 2017 as head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. He has not traveled to Tehran since then.

This January marked the 40th anniversary of Switzerland taking on a mandate of neutral “protecting power” representing U.S. diplomatic interests in Iran since Washington and Tehran cut ties shortly after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs said that Cassis will meet, among other Iranian leaders, President Hassan Rouhani and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif.

“On 6 September, Mr. Cassis will open an exhibition at the historic Negarestan Garden in Tehran on the history of Swiss-Iranian bilateral relations. He will also visit the Swiss embassy foreign interests section, which represents the interests of the United States in Iran under a protecting power mandate. Finally, Mr. Cassis will meet with representatives of Swiss companies, the scientific community and the health sector,” the statement read.

“On 7 September, Mr. Cassis will meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani,” it added.

It further said that Cassis and his Iranian hosts will also discuss current developments concerning the nuclear deal and the situation in West Asia.

MH/PA