Gaddam Dharmendra appointed India's Ambassador to Iran

Senior diplomat Gaddam Dharmendra has been appointed India's Ambassador to Iran, the Ministry of External Affairs announced Monday.

Dharmendra, a 1990-batch Indian Foreign Service officer and at present, additional secretary in the MEA here, will replace Saurabh Kumar, who was appointed India's ambassador to Myanmar last month. Dharmendra is expected to take up the assignment shortly, it said.

His appointment comes at a time when the global focus is on oil imports from Iran as the US on Monday imposed "the toughest ever" sanctions aimed at altering the Iranian regime's "behaviour".

India and China are believed to be among the eight countries that have been given the rare temporary exemptions from the Iranian sanctions.

The MEA also concurrently accredited Nina Tshering La, currently Indian Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo, as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Congo, with residence in Kinshasa.

She is expected to take up the assignment shortly, the MEA said.