Britain’s Middle East minister Andrew Murrison will visit Iran on Sunday for “frank and constructive” talks, Britain said, as tensions between Tehran and Washington rise after the downing of an unmanned US drone.

“At this time of increased regional tensions and at a crucial period for the future of the nuclear deal, this visit is an opportunity for further open, frank and constructive engagement with the government of Iran,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.

Murrison will call for urgent de-escalation in the region and raise concerns about “Iran’s regional conduct and its threat to cease complying with the nuclear deal to which the UK remains fully committed.”