Abbas Aram (1906–1985) was an

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

diplomat and served as

foreign minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

for two terms between 1959 and 1960 and between 1962 and 1966. In addition, he was ambassador to

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and Iran's first ambassador to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Career

Aram was the first secretary at the embassy of Iran in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in the 1940s. As of 1950 he was serving as the

chargé d'affaires A (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. The term is Frenc ...

there. He was the Iranian ambassador to Japan and then, to Iraq during the reign of

Mohammad Reza Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the Iranian Revolution, which ...

. Aram was twice appointed as foreign minister in the late 1950s and 1960s. His first term was brief, from 1959 to 1960. Aram attempted to revive the diplomatic relations with Iraq during the premiership of

Abdul-Karim Qasim Abdul-Karim Qasim Muhammad Bakr al-Fadhli Al-Qaraghuli al-Zubaidi ( ' ; 21 November 1914 – 9 February 1963) was an Iraqi military officer and statesman who served as the Prime Minister and de facto leader of Iraq from 1958 until his ...

. However, his attempts were not fruitful due to the suspicious approach of the

SAVAK The Bureau for Intelligence and Security of the State (), shortened to as SAVAK () or S.A.V.A.K. () was the secret police of the Imperial State of Iran. It was established in Tehran in 1957 by national security law. and continued to operate un ...

, Iran's security organization, towards Qasim. Aram was appointed to the post for a second term on 19 July 1962 and served in the first cabinet led by

Asadollah Alam Asadollah Alam (; 24 July 1919 – 14 April 1978) was an Iranian peoples, Iranian politician who was Prime Minister of Iran, prime minister under Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Mohammad Reza Shah from 1962 to 1964. He was also minister of Royal Court, p ...

. On 30 April and 1 May 1963 Aram represented Iran at the eleventh session of

CENTO Cento (; Bolognese dialect, Northern Bolognese: ; Bolognese dialect, City Bolognese: ; Bolognese dialect, Centese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. History The name Cento is a reference to the centur ...

ministerial council in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. Another significant event during his second term as minister of foreign affairs was the Iran–Soviet Memorandum concerning the sovereign rights of two countries in the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

. This agreement is known as Aram-Pegov agreement (Pegov refers to

Nikolai Pegov Nikolai Pegov (Russian: Николай Пегов; 3 April 1905 – 19 April 1991) was a Soviet official and diplomat. He served as the ambassador to Iran, Algeria, and India. Being a member of the Communist Party he also held various posts at t ...

, Soviet signatory of the document and ambassador to Iran), and was signed on 15 September 1962. Aram was also named as the minister of foreign affairs in the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

led by Prime Minister Hassan Ali Mansur on 7 March 1964. He remained in office until 1966 when

Ardeshir Zahedi Ardeshir Zahedi, GCVO (; 16 October 1928 – 18 November 2021) was a prominent Iranian politician and diplomat who served as the country's foreign minister from 1966 to 1971, and its ambassador to the United States and the United Kingdom during ...

replaced him in the post. Next Aram served as Iranian ambassador to the United Kingdom. He was appointed to the post in February 1967, replacing Ardeshir Zahedi. Aram's tenure ended in November 1969 when

Amir Khosrow Afshar Amir Khosrow Afshar (1919–1999; ) was an Iranian diplomat who served as the minister of foreign affairs of Iran during the Pahlavi era from 1978 to 1979. Biography Born in 1919 in Tehran, Afshar was a career diplomat. At the beginning of the 1 ...

was appointed Iranian ambassador to the United Kingdom. In December 1973, Aram was appointed Iranian ambassador to China, becoming the first Iranian diplomat served in the post.

Views

In July 1960 and in a press conference, Mohammad Reza Shah expressed his positive attitude towards Israel which was harshly criticised by the Egyptian President

Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...

. Following the incident both states expelled each other's ambassadors, and the Foreign Minister Aram stated that Gamal Abdel Nasser was a "light-headed

pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian language, Egyptian: ''wikt:pr ꜥꜣ, pr ꜥꜣ''; Meroitic language, Meroitic: 𐦲𐦤𐦧, ; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') was the title of the monarch of ancient Egypt from the First Dynasty of Egypt, First Dynasty ( ...

who is ruling by bloodshed". In the 1960s Aram was among the Iranian statesmen who favoured Iran's close relations with the U.S. and other Western countries in order to secure the survival of the

Pahlavi dynasty The Pahlavi dynasty () is an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian royal dynasty that was the Pahlavi Iran, last to rule Iran before the country's monarchy was abolished by the Iranian Revolution in 1979. It was founded in 1925 by Reza Shah, Reza S ...

Later years and death

Aram was arrested following the 1979

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

, but was later released. He died in 1985 and was buried in

Behesht-e Zahra Behesht-e Zahra ( ; ) is the largest cemetery in Iran. Located in the southern part of metropolitan Tehran, it is connected to the city by Tehran Metro Line 1. History In the early 1950s, all the cemeteries in Tehran were supposed to be replac ...

cemetery in Tehran.

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aram, Abbas 20th-century Iranian diplomats 1906 births 1985 deaths Ambassadors of Iran to China Ambassadors of Iran to Iraq Ambassadors of Iran to Japan Ambassadors of Iran to the United Kingdom Burials at Behesht-e Zahra Ministers of foreign affairs of Iran Grand Crosses with Star and Sash of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Iran Novin Party politicians Rastakhiz Party politicians People of Pahlavi Iran Cold War diplomats