Minister of Foreign Affairs (Iran)

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran
وزیر امور خارجه ایران
	Logo of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
	Incumbent; Abbas Araghchi; since 21 August 2024
	Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nominator	The president
Appointer	Iranian Parliament
Formation	October 1821 (original); 1 April 1979 (current form)
First holder	Neshat Esfahani
Website	www.mfa.gov.ir

The minister of foreign affairs of Iran (Persian: وزیر امور خارجه ایران, romanized: Vazir Amor Kharjeh Iran) is the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran and a member of the Cabinet. The office is currently held by Abbas Araghchi since 2024.

Duties

Functions of Minister have largely been moved to Supreme Leader's Supreme Strategic Council [fa] for foreign relations.^[1]

List of ministers

Qajar Iran

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office
No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Took office	Left office	Duration
1		Mirza Abdolvahab Khan Mo'tamed od-Dowleh Neshat (1759–1829)	1821	1823	1–2 years
2		Mirza Abolhassan Khan Ilchi (1776–1845)	1823	1834	10–11 years
3		Mirza Ali Farahani	1834	1835	0–1 years
4		Mirza Mas'ud Khan Ansari	1835	1838	2–3 years
5		Mirza Abolhassan Khan Ilchi (1776–1845)	1838	1845	6–7 years
—		Haji Mirza Aqasi (c. 1783–1849) Acting	1845	1846	0–1 years
6		Mirza Mas'ud Khan Ansari	1846	1849	2–3 years
—		Amir Kabir (1807–1851) Acting	1849	1851	1–2 years
7		Mirza Mohammad-Ali Khan Shirazi (c. 1780–1852)	18 July 1851	9 February 1852	206 days
8		Mirza Saeed Khan Ansari (1816–1884)	1853	1873	19–20 years
9		Mirza Hosein Khan Sepahsalar (1828–1881)	11 December 1873	1880	7–8 years
10		Mirza Saeed Khan Ansari (1816–1884)	1880	1884	3–4 years
11		Mirza Mahmoud Khan Naser al Molk	1884	1886	1–2 years
12		Mirza Yahya Khan Moshir od-Dowleh (1832–1892)	5 February 1886	1 August 1887	1 year, 177 days
13		Mirza Abbas Khan Qavam od-Dowleh	1887	29 June 1896	8–9 years
14		Mirza Mohsen Khan Moshir od-Dowleh	1896	1899	2–3 years
15		Mirza Nasrullah Khan (1840–1907)	1899	1906	6–7 years
16		Mohammad-Ali Ala ol-Saltaneh (1829–1918)	1906	15 September 1907	0–1 years
17		Javad Sad od-Dowleh	1907	1907	0 years
18		Hussein Kuli Khan Nawab (1864–1946)	1910	1911	0–1 years
...

Pahlavi Iran

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office
No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Took office	Left office	Duration
1		Nosrat-ed-Dowleh (1889–1937)	1 October 1925	1 October 1938	13 years
2		Ali Soheili (1895–1958)	1 October 1938	7 March 1939	157 days
3		Mozaffar Alam (1882–1973)	7 March 1939	20 April 1943	4 years, 44 days
4		Hossein Ala' (1881–1964)	25 April 1943	2 March 1945	1 year, 311 days
5		Mahmoud Salehi	2 March 1945	2 May 1945	61 days
6		Mohsen Rais (1895–1975)	2 May 1945	4 May 1945	2 days
7		Bagher Kazemi (1892–1977)	4 May 1945	7 April 1946	338 days
8		Hossein Navab (1897–1972)	7 April 1946	13 January 1950	3 years, 281 days
9		Ali Akbar Siassi (1896–1990)	13 January 1950	24 February 1950	42 days
10		Hossein Navab (1897–1972)	24 February 1950	28 April 1951	1 year, 63 days
11		Bagher Kazemi (1892–1977)	28 April 1951	16 July 1952	1 year, 79 days
12		Hossein Navab (1897–1972)	21 July 1952	16 September 1952	57 days
13		Hossein Fatemi (1917–1954)	16 September 1952	19 August 1953	337 days
14		Abdol-Hossein Meftah	23 August 1953	20 September 1953	28 days
15		Abdollah Entezam (1895–1983)	20 September 1953	25 December 1955	2 years, 96 days
16		Aligholi Ardalan (1900–1986)	25 December 1955	10 May 1958	2 years, 136 days
17		Ali-Asghar Hekmat (1892–1980)	10 May 1958	11 June 1959	1 year, 32 days
18		Jalal Abdoh [fa] (1906–1996)	13 June 1959	3 August 1959	51 days
19		Abbas Aram (1906–1985)	3 August 1959	29 August 1960	1 year, 26 days
20		Yadallah Adhdi	31 August 1960	21 February 1961	174 days
—		Hossein Ghods-Nakhai (1894–1977) Acting	11 March 1961	31 March 1962	1 year, 20 days
21		Abbas Aram (1906–1985)	1 April 1962	12 January 1967	4 years, 286 days
22		Ardeshir Zahedi (1928–2021)	12 January 1967	12 September 1971	4 years, 243 days
23		Abbas Ali Khalatbari (1912–1979)	13 September 1971	16 September 1978	7 years, 3 days
24		Amir Khosrow Afshar (1919–1999)	16 September 1978	6 January 1979	112 days
25		Ahmad Mirfendereski (1918–2004)	6 January 1979	11 February 1979	36 days

Islamic Republic of Iran

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office			Political party	Government
No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Took office	Left office	Duration	Political party	Government
1		Karim Sanjabi (1904–1995)	11 February 1979	1 April 1979^{[citation needed]}	49 days	NF	Interim Government
–		Mehdi Bazargan (1907–1995) Acting	1 April 1979	12 April 1979	11 days	FMI	Interim Government
2		Ebrahim Yazdi (1931–2017)	12 April 1979	12 November 1979	214 days	FMI	Interim Government
–		Abolhassan Banisadr (1933–2021) Acting	12 November 1979	29 November 1979	17 days	Independent	Interim Government
3		Sadegh Ghotbzadeh (1936–1982)	29 November 1979	3 August 1980	248 days	Independent	Interim Government
–		Karim Khodapanahi (born 1944^{[citation needed]}) Acting	3 August 1980	11 March 1981	220 days	FMI	Rajai
–		Mohammad-Ali Rajai^{[citation needed]} (1933–1981) Acting	11 March 1981^{[citation needed]}	15 August 1981	157 days	IRP	Rajai
4		Mir-Hossein Mousavi (born 1942)	15 August 1981	15 December 1981	122 days	IRP	Rajai Bahonar Interim Government Mousavi I
5		Ali Akbar Velayati (born 1945)	15 December 1981	20 August 1997	15 years, 248 days	IRP IAPI ICP	Mousavi I–II Rafsanjani I–II
6		Kamal Kharazi (1944–2026)	20 August 1997	24 August 2005	8 years, 4 days	Independent	Khatami I–II
7		Manouchehr Mottaki (born 1953)	24 August 2005	13 December 2010	5 years, 111 days	FFLIL	Ahmadinejad I–II
–		Ali Akbar Salehi (born 1949) Acting	13 December 2010	30 January 2011	48 days	Independent	Ahmadinejad II
8		Ali Akbar Salehi (born 1949)	30 January 2011	15 August 2013	2 years, 197 days	Independent	Ahmadinejad II
9		Mohammad Javad Zarif (born 1960)	15 August 2013	25 August 2021	8 years, 10 days	Independent	Rouhani I–II
10		Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (1964–2024)	25 August 2021	19 May 2024	2 years, 268 days	Independent	Raisi
–		Ali Bagheri (born 1967) Acting	20 May 2024	21 August 2024	93 days	Independent	Interim Government
11		Abbas Araghchi (born 1960)	21 August 2024	Incumbent	1 year, 262 days	Independent	Pezeshkian

Timeline since 1979

References

^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2014/06/140617_l39_file_foreign_relations_council.shtml

External links

Media related to Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Iran at Wikimedia Commons

[1] ttp://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2014/06/140617_l39_file_foreign_relations_council.shtml

[1]

v t e Ministers of foreign affairs of Iran
Qajar monarchy	Neshat Esfahani Ilchi Garmrudi Aghasi^a Amir Kabir^a Mirza Mohammad-Ali Khan Shirazi Ansari Moshir od-Dowleh Ansari Nasrullah Khan
Pahlavi monarchy	Nosrat-ed-Dowleh Soheili Alam Ala' Salehi Rais Kazemi Navab Fatemi Meftah Zahedi Entezam Ardalan Aram Sharif-Emami Ghods-Nakhai^a Aram Zahedi Khalatbari Afshar Mirfendereski
Islamic Republic	Sanjabi Bazargan^a Yazdi Banisadr^a Ghotbzadeh Khodapanahi^a Rajai^a Mousavi Velayati Kharazi Mottaki Salehi Zarif Amir-Abdollahian Bagheri^a Araghchi
^a Acting