S Jaishankar to attend Iranian President-elect Ebrahim Raisi's oath ceremony

S Jaishankar will meet Raisi during the visit, and also hold talks with other leaders on the sidelines of the trip, the ministry said without giving details.

India will be represented by external affairs minister S Jaishankar at the inauguration of Iran’s president-elect Ebrahim Raisi on August 5, the external affairs ministry said on Wednesday.

Iran had invited India to attend the swearing-in ceremony when S Jaishankar met Raisi during a stopover in Tehran on July 7 while travelling to Moscow.(Photo Courtesy- ANI)

“At the invitation of the government of Iran, external affairs minister will visit Iran on August 5-6, 2021 to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the President-elect H.E. Ayatollah Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi on August 5,” the ministry said in a statement.

Jaishankar will meet Raisi during the visit, and also hold talks with other leaders on the sidelines of the trip, the ministry said without giving details.

Iran had invited India to attend the swearing-in ceremony when Jaishankar met Raisi during a stopover in Tehran on July 7 while travelling to Moscow. A total of 115 officials from 73 countries, including 10 heads of state, 11 foreign ministers and 10 other ministers, will attend the inauguration.

There were earlier indications that India would be represented at the ceremony by some other minister and the decision to send Jaishankar reflects the convergence between the two countries on key issues such as the situation in Afghanistan, people familiar with developments said.

The presence of the external affairs minister at the ceremony will also signal the importance attached by New Delhi to its ties with Tehran, the people cited above said.

A visit by Jaishankar will be an opportunity for the two sides to exchange notes on regional developments.