Austrian President Heinz Fischer is to visit Iran next week. In his three-day stay, starting Sep. 7, the senior European official will discuss expansion of relations with Iranian authorities, IRNA reported. Iran’s Ambassador to Austria Hasan Tajik had earlier announced that a delegation of 200 political, scientific and cultural figures as well as business leaders would accompany Fischer. The Austrian leader is scheduled to meet President Hassan Rouhani, Chairman of the Expediency Council Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and other high-ranking officials. Fischer’s visit comes at the invitation of President Rouhani and will be the first trip by a western head of state after the July 14 nuclear deal. Austria has traditionally had good economic relations with Iran. The neutral European Union member has lately hosted talks between Tehran and major powers on the nuclear accord.
