TOKYO, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will make a two-day visit to Iran from June 12, amid rising tensions in the Persian Gulf between the United States and Iran over an international nuclear agreement, Japanese government said Thursday.
At a meeting of a lower house steering committee, it was provisionally decided that amid tensions in the region, Abe would visit Iran with the prime minister believing he could help deescalate the situation as Japan has friendly ties with both Washington and Tehran.
According to the outlines of the plan, Abe will meet with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani.
During the talks, the Japanese premier is likely to underscore Japan's hope that Iran would stick to an international nuclear accord inked in 2015 between Iran and six major powers.
U.S. President Donald Trump, however, has since pulled the U.S. out of the international nuclear deal and restored sanctions against Tehran that were scraped under the 2015 deal.
Before Abe's trip, government sources said that Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono will visit Iran to hold talks with his counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.
