Iran’s foreign minister Javad Zarif looks to China, Japan, Malaysia to seek relief from US sanctions

Washington slapped sanctions on Zarif last month to target any US assets he has and impact his ability to travel

Iran-US ties have deteriorated since Trump withdrew the US from a 2015 deal in which Iran agreed to limit nuclear activities in return for sanctions relief

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Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. Photo: NTB Scanpix via Reuters

Published: 10:45pm, 24 Aug 2019Updated: 10:45pm, 24 Aug 2019

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will head to Asia on Sunday, his office said, as part of a diplomatic push to win relief from biting US sanctions.

Zarif would visit China, Japan and Malaysia fresh on the heels of a tour of Western European nations, spokesman Abbas Mousavi said late on Friday on the ministry’s Telegram channel.

“Bilateral relations and most importantly regional and international issues are some of the topics our foreign minister will discuss with the aforementioned countries’ officials during the trip,” said Mousavi.

The United States slapped sanctions on Zarif late last month in a bid to target any American assets he has and squeeze his ability to function as a globe-trotting diplomat.

But Zarif hailed his visit to France on Friday following trips to Finland, Sweden and Norway.

In a post on Twitter, he said “despite US efforts to destroy diplomacy” he met French President Emmanuel Macron, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and had interviews with media in Paris.

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