Iran appoints new permanent ambassador to UN

Iran has appointed President Hassan Rouhani’s deputy chief of staff and former nuclear negotiator as the country’s permanent ambassador to the United Nations.

Majid Takht-e Ravanchi was appointed to the position following a proposal by the Foreign Ministry that was approved by the President’s Office, the ministry’s spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said.

He used to fill various offices at the Islamic Republic’s mission at the UN from 1989 to 1998. The diplomat also served as deputy foreign minister and Iran’s ambassador to Bern and Switzerland at various junctures.

In addition, Takht-e Ravanchi was part of the Iranian team in the negotiations that led to the conclusion of the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal between Tehran and six world countries -- namely the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany.

The US, however, pulled out of the deal last May, while other co-signatories are working to save the landmark deal and protect their business ties with Tehran in the face of the American sanctions, which were reinstated against Tehran later in 2018.

Takht-e Ravanchi holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Kansas in Civil Engineering, a Master’s from Fordham University in International Political Economy and Development, and a PhD from the University of Bern in Political Science.