President Ruto holds bilateral talks with Iran counterpart Ebrahim Raisi at State House
President William Ruto on Wednesday, July 12, 2023, hosted his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi at State House, Nairobi, for bilateral talks.
The Iranian Head of State arrived in the country early on Wednesday morning, a day after his visit to the country was rescheduled.
In videos shared by State House, the Iranian leader inspected a guard of honour a few minutes past 7 am.
Raisi is set for an African tour that will also see him visit Uganda and Zimbabwe. Initially, the President's schedule was to see him start his tour of Africa on Tuesday, but it was delayed by a day.
According to a dispatch from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the visit was postponed to allow for the finalization of “key Memorandum of Associations (MoUs) that are central to the furtherance of relations.”
The ministry was forced to issue the clarification after claims that Raisi's visit had been delayed due to pressure from the international community, particularly the USA and Israel which have continuously held Iran in contempt.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry said the visit will provide the two countries with an opportunity to review and re-energize their bilateral relations for the mutual benefit of the people of the two nations.
The Iranian Head of State is also expected to lay a wreath at the Mausoleum of the late President Jomo Kenyatta before proceeding to Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Raisi's visit to Africa is the first in 11 years by an Iranian president. On July 8, the Iranian leader met with Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf as the two nations hope to boost their bilateral relations.
Raisi's mission is seen as a move by the Islamic Republic to improve relations with the world community after suffering from economic sanctions. Iran has suffered from diplomatic isolation, especially since 2018 when the USA withdrew from a nuclear energy agreement it had initially entered into.
Recently, Iran was admitted as the latest member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which includes Russia, China, and India.
