Iran President On Rare Africa Tour To End Isolation

In an effort to reduce Iran's isolation, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will embark on a rare African tour on Tuesday.

The three-day trip -- including stops in Kenya, Uganda, and Zimbabwe -- will be the first by an Iranian president in 11 years.

As reported by the official IRNA news agency, Raisi is leading a delegation consisting of senior businesspeople and Iran's foreign minister.

Foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Monday described the trip as "an important turning point" for economic and trade cooperation with Africa.

Despite the United States withdrawing from the nuclear deal in 2018, Iran has beefed up its diplomacy in recent months to reduce its isolation through making new alliances.

The Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf was welcomed by Raisi on Saturday as part of an effort to improve relations between the two countries.

It was announced last week that the Islamic republic had been admitted to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

After a Latin American tour that included Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba, Raisi visited Indonesia in July.

Under a China-mediated deal, Iran restored ties with its regional rival Saudi Arabia in March. After pro-regime protesters attacked Saudi Arabia's embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad in 2016, Saudi Arabia severed ties with Iran.

It is now seeking to reestablish ties with Egypt and Morocco.