This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The imprisonment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is to be discussed as Middle East minister Alistair Burt holds talks in Iran on Saturday.

Burt intends to raise the high-profile case as he meets the Iranian deputy foreign affairs minister, Abbas Araghchi, in Tehran.



Zaghari-Ratcliffe was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for spying in 2016 but maintains her innocence, saying she was on holiday to introduce her daughter to her family in Iran.

The foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has promised to heighten efforts aimed at securing the British-Iranian woman’s release after she passed out during a panic attack and had to be taken to a prison clinic earlier this week.

Burt is using his visit to discuss the cases of British dual-nationals detained in Iran as well as holding talks on the Iran nuclear deal and the conflicts in Syria and Yemen.



Speaking before the visit, Burt said: “I will also use the opportunity of my visit to push for the resolution we all want to see in the cases of the British dual nationals detained in Iran.”

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Burt is the first British minister to visit the country since the US withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in May, dismaying the UK and other European nations.



He arrives two days after Zaghari-Ratcliffe was taken to a prison hospital after a panic attack, following her return to jail from three days on temporary release with her daughter and other family members.

Earlier in the week, Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s husband, Richard Ratcliffe, who has spent two years seeking her release, praised Hunt for taking a closer interest in the matter than his predecessor, Boris Johnson.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4, Ratcliffe said he had “sensed a change in the way he has prioritised Nazanin’s case”.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who works for the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was sentenced to five years in jail after she was accused of spying. She insists she was on holiday. Her four-year-old daughter, Gabriella, has been staying with family since she was arrested in April 2016.

In comments released before his arrival, Burt said it was “a crucial moment for Iran’s relationship with the UK, and the wider world”.

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He said: “Since the US withdrew from the nuclear deal, we – along with European and international partners – have reiterated our support for the deal and have underscored this support through mechanisms such as EU blocking legislation.

“As long as Iran meets its commitments under the deal, we remain committed to it as we believe it is the best way to ensure a safe, secure future for the region.”

At the same time, Burt said, he would be “strongly challenging” Iran on issues such as its ballistic missile programme and actions in other Middle East countries.

Donald Trump announced in May that the US was pulling out of the painstakingly negotiated deal, which eased sanctions on Iran in return for an end to Tehran’s military nuclear ambitions.

Earlier in August, Hunt joined his French and German counterparts to voice their “deep regret” at Washington’s withdrawal from the joint comprehensive plan of action and vowed to protect European companies from US reprisals if they continue to trade with Iran.