London, Dec 31, IRNA � UK's new Charg� d'Affaires to Iran Nicholas Hopton expressed the hope that Tehran and London will soon enhance their bilateral relations to the ambassador level.


'I�m delighted to be posted to Tehran as charg� d�affaires. I hope that it will be possible soon for both the UK and Iran to be represented by full ambassadors in which case I will be glad to serve in that capacity,' he said in a statement on his appointment.
Hopton starts his new role on 31 December 2015 in succession to Ajay Sharma, who has been posted to a new role as ambassador to Qatar, FCO announced in a press release on Wednesday.
'This is an important moment for relations between the UK and Iran, which we hope will continue to develop positively following the re-opening of Embassies. I look forward to contributing to that in the new spirit of cooperation between the two countries,' he added.
FCO also announced that Hopton moves to Tehran from Doha where he was ambassador to Qatar from 2013 to 2015.
Hopton joined the FCO in 1989 and has previously served as ambassador to Yemen. He has worked on national security issues in the Cabinet Office, led the International Organizations Department in the FCO and has European policy experience from postings in Paris and Rome and time as Private Secretary to the Minister for Europe, read the press release.
Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond re-opened the British Embassy in Tehran on 23 August 2015 just few weeks after the E3+3 (UK, France, Germany, Russia, China and US), the EU and Iran reached a comprehensive agreement on Iran�s peaceful nuclear program on 14 July.

By IRNA