China sends ambassador to Iran after '79 lapse
| Tehran, Iran
China has sent an ambassador to Tehran for the first time since last August, press reports said over the weekend. The appointment of Ambassador Zhuang Yan was seen by diplomatic observers as a small gesture by the Chinese in improving relations with Iran.
The previous ambassador, Jiao Rouyu, left Iran last July when China refused to apologize for its relations with the government of the deposed Shah, Muhammad Reza Pahlavi.